A Girl For Kiba
by Soranaru
Summary: Title says it all. Kiba needs that significant other in his life, and she is the perfect candidate. But, there may be more to her than meets the eye...
1. Chapter 1: Bored of Being Bored

**I always thought it was kinda a waste. I mean Naruto got Hinata (The Last is so kawaiiii!); Sasuke got Sakura (sorry, Sakura, but I still think your little 'chase Sasuke for the rest of my life' thing is kinda pathetic); Shikamaru got Temari (saw it coming!), Sai got Ino (can't say I saw** _ **that**_ **coming); heck, even Chouji got Karui (it's like, how the hell did** _ **that**_ **happen?!). Neji died, if not, I'm sure Tenten and him would've…ya know. And Shino… (clears throat). Masashi decided to leave poor little Kiba all alone. I object, Your Honor! Kiba deserves happiness too! So I'm gonna make it for him!**  
 **This takes place after the war, so Kiba's, like, 19 or 20 or so.**

Chapter 1: Bored of Being Bored

"WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING IN BED?!" Tsume Inuzuka screamed. "Mrmm…." Kiba mumbled, turning in his bed. He wasn't ready to wake up quite yet. "What the-" Kiba practically jumped out of bed; his mother had just poured a jar of ice-cold water on his face.  
"It's too early in the morning to start your bitchin'!" Kiba whined. " _Bitching?!_ Will you get that lazy behind off that bed and live your life? It's 11am, for goodness' sake!" Tsume growled, an anime vein popping on her forehead. "Yeah, so?" Kiba dared to mumble. Tsume lost it. Let's just say Kiba made it to the bathroom on time…

About 30 minutes later, Kiba walked into the dining room with Akamaru. "What's for breakfast?" he asked. "Breakfast? Oh for heaven's sake, there's a plate of pancakes right in front of you!" his mother sighed. "Oh yeah," Kiba slurred lazily, and sat down to eat. Akamaru whined a bit. "This is human food, Akamaru," Kiba said. Akamaru gave him puppy-dog eyes. Kiba laughed. "You're way too old for that!" he said, but sacrificed his breakfast anyway.

"I'm off!" Kiba said, standing up. "Wait!" Hana said, running up to Kiba with a picnic basket. "I made you lunch, Otoutou-san," she beamed. "Thanks," Kiba smiled at her. He loved his older sister. "Aren't you supposed to be gone by now, Kiba?" Tsume snarled from the kitchen. Ugh. His mom on the other hand… Hana offered up an apologetic smile in place of their mother. "Have fun, son! And get a girlfriend while you're at it…if that's even possible!" Tsume snickered. "Goodbye, Mother." SLAM!

"I'm bored," Kiba announced as he walked down the streets of Konoha with Akamaru by his side. Akamaru barked in agreement. "Let's see if Shino's free," Kiba suggested and Akamaru responded in the same manner. They reached Shino's house a few moments later. Kiba raised a loose fist to knock on Shino's door, but Shino opened the door at that exact moment, and Kiba ended up knocking on his forehead, _almost_ knocking off his glasses. ( **A/N: Unfortunately…)** "S'up, dude?" Kiba grinned, though disappointed that he couldn't see what was under his friend's glasses. "Wanna hang?"  
Shino shook his head. "I cannot. The reason is that I have a mission with Tenten today," he said. "Oh. Okay then. Later!" Kiba said waving as they parted ways. "Let's try Shikamaru next," he said to Akamaru.

Kiba waited several moments before Shikamaru answered his door. He was all dressed up with a lopsided tie and a comb in his hair. Kiba blinked, not sure what to say. Shikamaru sighed. "You can laugh if you really want to," he said. Kiba smirked. "Now why would I want to do that?" he joked. Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "In case you were wondering why I look like this, its cos I'm going to Temari's cousin's birthday party today," he said. "It's really troublesome, but Temari will blow a fuse if I don't show up."  
"You take orders from girls now?" Kiba teased. "Seriously," Shikamaru sighed. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go practice my 'I-am-so-happy-to-be-here' face."

Kiba decided to try Lee next. He met him far from his home, upside down. "Again, Lee?" Kiba said, exasperated. "I must walk around Konoha with my hands only 500 times before I can do anything else!" Lee stated with a seriousness that amused Kiba. "Sure…" Kiba said, and got the hell outta there.  
"Neji would be next on my list, if not for…ya know," Kiba sighed. "Sasuke is goodness knows where, not that I'd actually hang out with him. And I'm definitely not going to listen to Naruto gush about ramen and the Kyuubi and Hinata." Kiba smiled lightly as he thought of Hinata and Naruto's current relationship, which he had been rooting for since he was 12. Akamaru barked. "Chouji? Good idea," Kiba beamed at his faithful companion.

This time, Kiba didn't even get to lift his hand before Chouji opened the door. "Going somewhere, Chouji?" he asked. Chouji nodded enthusiastically. "It's Father-Son day today," he said. "Dad and I are going out." "Aren't you a little too old for that?" Kiba asked as he sweat-dropped. Choza appeared beside Chouji and gave Kiba a thumbs-up. "You're never too old for good old male bonding," he said, laughing heartily. "You should have some father-son time too," Chouji advised. "Uh, yeah. Sure," Kiba mumbled and walked away.

"Good going, son," Kiba heard Choza say sarcastically. "What?" Chouji whined. "Don't you remember what happened to Kiba's dad?" "Oh."  
"Ugh, I'm running out of people to visit!" Kiba moaned. Akamaru barked. "Oh, that guy," Kiba sighed. He and Sai weren't the closest of friends, but they weren't enemies either. Kiba made a U-turn for Sai's apartment.

He met Sai on the sidewalk leading to the front door of his apartment. For some reason, he was holding a small pink book with yellow flowers on it. "Where're ya headed, Sai?" Kiba asked. "I promised Ino I'd help her with her flower shop today," Sai replied. "Well that explains the book," Kiba commented. Sai smiled. "It seems you were coming to visit me. Sorry to walk out on you like this. Maybe next time." "No problem," Kiba said. They walked to the edge of the walk together then parted ways.

"Only one person left!" Kiba said, clenching his fist. "That person won't refuse me! Zetai ni (definitely)!"  
"I-I'm sorry, Kiba-kun," Hinata said quietly, bowing her head. "I have a date with Naruto-kun today." Kiba hanged his head in defeat. "Of course you do," he sighed dejectedly. "B-but we can meet up tomorrow! I don't have anything!" Hinata pleaded. "Sure," Kiba said, managing a smile for Hinata. If he didn't, Hinata would beat herself up about it until the next day! "I'll just…hang out with Shikamaru or something," he added. "Tell him I said hi!" Hinata beamed.

 ***Short time skip***  
"I can't believe it!" Kiba moaned. He and Akamaru were on their way to their usual training ground in the park **(A/N: Or is it a forest? I can never tell!)** "Even my best friend (Hinata) doesn't have time for me!" Akamaru whined, and Kiba squatted down to pet him. "Not you, buddy. You're always there for me," he smiled. Akamaru barked happily. "I guess we can just train. Gotta catch up to Naruto, ya know!" he grinned.  
The pair walked happily, Kiba whistling and swinging his picnic basket back and forth. And then, he saw _her._

 **Totally cheesy ending, I know! But hey, cheese works on hamburgers…why not here? Oh yeah, I just remembered: Kiba ended up living with that Tamaki chick , but their actual relationship is not confirmed, so x all over** _ **her.**_ **I hope you had as much fun reading this as I had writing, especially the parts involving Tsume ˄_˄!**  
 _ **Please**_ **review! I'd love to hear what you all think!**


	2. Chapter 2: A New Face

**Here we go…**

Chapter Two: A New Face

She was crying. She was sitting on the wooden bench, hugging her knees to her chest, her head buried in those knees, and chestnut-colored locks splayed in all directions. Her sobs were heart-breaking, and Kiba felt a tug at his heart, she made him feel like crying too. Even Akamaru whimpered a bit.  
Kiba approached her cautiously. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked quietly. Her head jerked up suddenly, and violet eyes widened at the sight of him. She frantically wiped her tears away, as if embarrassed to be caught crying.

"I'm fine!" she said, though her voice cracked. "You don't _look_ fine," Kiba pointed out, taking a seat beside her. "No really, I- I'm okay. It's just…I was supposed to meet someone here. He didn't show up." Her mood changed as she clenched her fist. "I don't know what I was expecting. As always, he's just a stupid, lying, cheating…DOG!"

Kiba winced a little and Akamaru growled. "You could've thought of a different animal…" he said. "Oh! Sorry," the girl said, looking down at Akamaru. Akamaru barked at wagged his tail, indicating that she was forgiven. The girl laughed. You wouldn't believe that she was crying her heart out just a minute ago. Kiba decided to relax.

"So where're you from? I've never seen you around here before," Kiba stated. "So what? You, like, know everyone in Konoha?" the girl sorted. Yep, even Kiba couldn't believe she'd just been crying. "Well, kinda," Kiba said, frowning. Shinobi get around, after all. Especially shinobi like Kiba.

"I'm sorry if I came off as rude," the girl said, biting her lip. "Getting stood up puts a girl in a bad mood." Kiba nodded, remembering the time missed Ino's special Flower Shop Opening Anniversary. Not exactly the same thing, but it was close enough. "Anyway, you're right. I just moved her a few days ago from Amegakure," she said. "The place where it rains year round?" Kiba asked. The girl laughed a little. "Actually, that ended around the time Pain got taken down," she explained.

"Ah," Kiba said, and they lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. After what felt painfully like hours, the girl let out a sigh. "Since he's obviously not coming, I might as well go home. And cry myself to sleep." She didn't mean for Kiba to hear the last part, but he did.

"You're new here right?" he asked. "I believe I just said that," the girl said, not in the mood for idiocy. "I think it's safe to assume that you haven't been properly welcomed here, so I'll take it into my hands to give you an official tour of Konohagakure no Sato!" Kiba said with a big grin.  
"A-are you sure?" the girl asked. "Sure! I mean, you're free, I'm free. What else would we do?" he said. Kiba's smile was contagious and she found herself smiling too. "Okay! Thanks!" she said.

They both stood up, and the girl offered to carry Kiba's picnic basket for him. Kiba was relieved cos carrying that girly thing around was embarrassing! "First stop, the Konoha Monument!" Kiba announced, and she giggled at his enthusiasm. When they got there, Kiba named all of them in order, stating that The Third was a kind old geezer, The Fifth was a hothead and the current Sixth Hokage was a weirdo who always wore a mask. "But you'd love them all," Kiba grinned. "I know I did…despite their…traits." She giggled again.

Kiba took her around, showing her the Academy, the Hokage's office, Hana's office (Hana is a vet, and he didn't mention they were siblings), the Yamanaka flower shop where he said hi to Sai and Ino, and a bunch of other places. "And for the grand ending of this tour, Ichiraku's Ramen Shop!" Kiba announced. "Oh, I've already been here," the girl said. "The old lady who lives beside me recommended this place. It seems to be quite popular."

"Hmm, I never knew it was _that_ popular," Kiba commented, stroking an imaginary beard. "But it _is_ a great place. If you're feeling down, stopping by Ichiraku's always cheers you up!" _Ugh, now I sound like Naruto,_ Kiba thought. "Guess I'll give it a test run," the girl said. "Wait, you're still sad after all that?" Kiba asked, grabbing her hand before she could walk in. "Huh?" the girl gave him a clueless expression. Then realization flashed across her face. "Oh! When I said 'test run', I meant I want to taste the ramen, not to see if I get cheered up. The last time I was here, I didn't have any money with me…"

"Oh, phew!" Kiba said. "I was afraid I was a bad tour guide." He smiled down at her and she smiled back. And they just kinda stood there, smiling at each other, happy just to be in each other's presence.

"Well, _that_ play was a total rip-off! I totally knew that Asaoka was the culprit from the beginning, ya know!" "R-really? I had no idea…"

Kiba cringed as he heard two familiar voices. Naruto was always so loud, and he seemed to be rubbing off on Hinata! Figures they would come to Ichiraku's as part of their date. "What's wrong?" the girl asked, noticing his discomfort. "Come on," Kiba said, grabbing her hand and pulling her beside the building. "What's happening?" She was _really_ confused now. "Shhh," Kiba commanded, peeping out carefully. He waited until Hinata and Naruto were in the ramen shop before breathing. "What happened?" the girl asked, following Kiba out from their 'hiding' place.

"NaruHina," Kiba said. "Huh?" "It's a couple name. I ship it, but I will literally _puke_ if I see my best friend and my rival making goo-goo eyes at each other!"  
She giggled, then peeped in through the window. "The blond and the dark-haired girl, right?" she asked. "How did you know?" Kiba asked. "Before you pulled me away, I managed to get a peep through the window, and there were only a man with black hair, a girl with pink hair,a toddler, and a brown-haired woman about 30 years old," the girl explained. Kiba stared at her incredulously. "You got all that from just a peep?" he asked. She giggled.

"So which one's your rival?" she asked. "The idiot blond," Kiba said, rolling his eyes, then grinning at the thought of Naruto and his shenanigans. "So the girl is your best friend?" she asked. "Yeah," Kiba said. She began to laugh, but not in a mean way. Kiba thought her laughter sounded –yeah, this is cheesy- like bells. Her laughs were apparently also contagious, and Kiba began to laugh too. "Why are you laughing?" she asked between giggles. "Why are _you_ laughing?" Kiba retorted.

When they finally calmed down, the girl said, "I'm suddenly hungry." "Me too," Kiba said. Akamaru whined, indicating that he too was hungry. **(A/N: Ooops, kinda forgot he was there...)** "Well, we have that," Kiba said, pointing at the basket Hana gave him. The girl raised it up. "I'm not sure all three of us can share this," she said. "Nah, Hana packs food like she's getting it for an army! That's cos I usually meet up with my friends when I go out," Kiba grinned. "Um, so I can join you?" the girl asked, her eyes becoming bigger. "Wow, you're really hungry, aren't you?" Kiba chuckled. She nodded her head, a little too excitedly. "Okay then. Let's head back."

Hana really _did_ pack for an army. Kiba wondered how all that _gyuuniku, kayu, oden, saury, miso soup, mitarashi dango, pilaf_ and Kiba's personal favourite, _gristle_ in such a little picnic basket! "There's no way I'm gonna eat all this," Kiba murmured as he watched the girl unpack it all. Akamaru barked and Kiba laughed. "What did he say?" she asked. "Akamaru says he's more than happy to help us finish up whatever we don't eat!" Kiba replied. She laughed. "I think it's so cool, how you and your dog connect so well," she said. Kiba looked at Akamaru with a grin. "We've been together for as long as I can remember! Although he peed on my face the first time we met… and for some reason, Mom and Hana thought it was funny…"

Kiba got a little blush on his face when he said that, and she giggled. "I'd have loved to see _that_!" she teased. "Well, thank goodness you weren't!" Kiba said. "I've never had a pet before, but there was a stray that used to come around my neighborhood all the time. Me and the other kids used to play with it every day. Especially after…" she trailed off. "Never mind." Kiba noticed a sad look in her eyes. He decided to change the subject. "Well, Akamaru is more of a partner than a friend…" he started. "That reminds me…why do you call him Aka(red)maru instead of Shiro(white)maru?" she asked. Kiba chuckled. "If I had a coin for everytime someone asked me that question, I'd be rich by now," he said.

Just like that, they talked about lots of different things over Hana's lunch. Akamaru joined in too. He didn't even notice the sun starting to set…  
…until it became hard to see the face in front of him. He face-palmed. "Oh no! Yabai (this is bad)," he groaned. "What's wrong?" she asked. "It's my turn to help mom make dinner! She's going to butcher me!" "Dinner? Oh my, I didn't even notice it getting dark!" "You and me alike, then," Kiba said as he began to pack up their scraps. "Let me help you," she said.

"By the way, don't you think it's too late?" she asked. "Better late than never. You this morning is a perfect example of girls' reaction to getting stood up," Kiba said, then immediately wished he could take it back. To his surprise, she laughed. "True that," she agreed. _Phew._ Seems like she was already totally over the jerk that stood _her_ up that morning.

"Jaane!" Kiba said, standing up. "Oh, it looks like we're heading the same way! Let's go together!" she said. "Hmm, kay," Kiba agreed. They walked on in silence for a while. "Seems like your mom is scary," she said out of the blue. Kiba laughed. "Yeah she is, but that's just her way of looking out for us," he grinned. She smiled back at him. They just smiled at each other as they walked, oblivious to everything happening around them; that seemed to be happening a lot lately.

"Oh, here's where we separate. Oyasuminasai!" she said. "Oyasumi!" Kiba called as he waved. A few seconds later, Kiba looked down at Akamaru and said, "I forgot to ask for her name…" They both looked back, but she was long gone.

* * *

 **Whoo! Almost 2,000 words! I'm on a roll, baby! :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Remember to let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3: We Meet Again

**Ikou!**

Chapter Three: We Meet Again

A girl with chestnut-coloured hair and purple highlights fidgeted on her spot on a wooden bench. For the past week, she had been coming here every day, hoping to see the boy who'd given her a tour the other day. She wasn't supposed to feel so excited at the thought of another boy, but she didn't care. He made her laugh, and she hadn't been doing that a lot lately. She sighed. It was almost noon. Maybe he just wasn't coming today either. She sighed again. Why, oh why didn't she ask for his name that day? And there was no way he was asking his friends at the flower shop or that blond guy and his girlfriend. It'd be much too weird!

"Yo!" said a familiar voice, and her head shot up immediately. It was him! And Akamaru too! "Where've you been! I've been waiting for a week now!" she blurted. "I was out on a mission to Suna," Kiba said. Then he smiled a Cheshire Cat grin and he raised his eyebrows. "A whole week? Did you miss me _that_ much?" he teased. Her face turned bright red. "O-of course not! B-baka!" she stuttered. "Oh? You're blushing? Have you fallen for me already?" he teased. "Who would?" she said, turning her face so he wouldn't notice her deepening blush.

"Ouch," Kiba said, his mind going back to what his mother had said **(see chapter one)**. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!" the girl cried, turning to face him, but Kiba just grinned. "Don't sweat it," he grinned. She smiled back at him. _Phew, I thought for sure I'd made him mad..._ she thought. But Kiba was an easy-going guy. That was something she had yet to learn.

Kiba leaned backward on the bench and went silent. She looked at him quizzically. She'd thought for sure he'd start a conversation. "What's wrong?" she asked. Kiba blinked, coming back to reality. "Ah, nothing really," he sighed. She stared at him. He was thinking _really hard_ about something, but what? Well, she didn't want to pry. After all, they weren't even really friends yet. She kept her mouth shut...for about five seconds. Her curiosity got the best of her. "Something _is_ wrong!" she declared. "Ya know...instead of just bottling up your emotions, it's best to let them out," she added quietly.

Kiba sighed, then grinned at her again. "You got me. Just...don't laugh, okay?" "Why would I?" she asked, knowing she probably would. "Okay..."  
"I'm thinking of moving out," Kiba admitted. "Out?" she echoed. "From Mom's house. Well, technically, I've _already_ moved out. Me and Hana got our own places after the war ended. But Mom, although she pretty much kicks us out all the time...she couldn't bear being alone. She'd always either come by or insist we visit. Then she'd keep us so long, we'd end up sleeping over. Right now, I've pretty much moved back in. My house is collecting cobwebs and dust bunnies by now." He laughed, but it lacked humor. "It's hard on Hana, cos her home is closer to her office than Mom's home, but she stays to keep Mom happy. It's gotten hard though, and Hana left completely. She's just too busy. The thing is, I was planning on moving back to _my_ house because I thought Hana would stay. If I keep freeloading off Mom, I'll never actually grow up! But now that Hana's gone, Mom will be lonely. I don't know whether to abandon the plan completely, or go along with it and explain to Mom why I have to."

Kiba let out another long sigh. "But knowing Mom, she'll smile and say 'I don't need you anyways', but inside, her heart would be breaking." He let out another half-laugh then peeped at the girl sitting beside him. "That's totally stupid, isn't it?"

"No, I don't think it's stupid at all," she said quietly. "In fact, I think you're lucky. I wish I could have your problems." "Huh? Why would you want to be in the position I'm in right now?! This is not as easy as it looks!" Kiba exclaimed. "But your problems are just so...normal," she sighed. Akamaru whined and she stroked his head. "You're lucky to have someone like Akamaru. When I was a kid, I didn't have someone like him. There was only a neighborhood cat we used to call 'Neko'. She was a stray, and me and the other kids in the neighborhood would play with her. "

She stopped stroking Akamaru for a second. "I wanted to keep Neko, but Dad wouldn't let me. Eventually, some other kid adopted her. I was heart-broken. Then it seemed that Neko was the only one that really knew me. I was jealous of the other kids too. Even though they didn't have as much as me, at least _they_ had a loving family to go back to. But for me, at home, there was only _him_."

Kiba stayed silent as he listened to her talk. She must've been through a lot. She noticed him staring and giggled nervously. "Wow, the mood got dreary so fast! I'm sorry! I'm supposed to be helping you, not bringing you down with _my_ sob-story!" She stood up suddenly, causing Akamaru, whose head was resting on her feet, to yelp. "I'm sorry! I really can't say anything to help you! I don't have that type of experience. I hardly remember my mother and my father's a jerk! And I forced you to tell me too..." "Nah, it's okay. I needed to get that out anyway," Kiba said, standing up too.

"Ya know...I skipped breakfast to come here early enough to possibly see you!" she blurted. "So now I'm _reeeaaalllyyy_ hungry!" Kiba laughed, a real one this time. "Wow! You've fallen deeper than I thought!" he joked. "B-baka! It's cos you're the only one I know in this place!" she defended, her cheeks already a bright crimson. "Aaanyway, I was wondering if you could take me to that ramen place, um, Ichiraku's?" "Why ramen?" Kiba sighed half-heartedly. "You don't have to take me if you don't want to!" she stuttered, embarassed.

Kiba flashed his signature cocky grin. "No, I will. Consider it a thanks for listening." _Phew!_ she thought.

Soon, the both of them were sitting in front of the counter at Ichiraku's. "Hey, Ayame!" Kiba greeted. "Hiii!" the chef's daughter responded brightly. "The usual?" she asked. "That depends...is it as good as usual?" Kiba winked. "Tch! Naughty, naughty!" Ayame shook her finger at him before turning to the strange girl sitting beside Kiba. "What about you, Miss?" "Um, I'll have whatever _he's_ having," she stammered. People were so nice here in Konoha.

"Wow! I see why this place is so popular!" she exclaimed a while later. "Deshou?" Kiba grinned. "No, seriously! The little old lady that lives next to me kept on suggesting this place! I'll have to thank her later!" "Thank her on my behalf too!" Teuchi laughed. "She brought me more customers! And such a pretty one at that!" She blushed. "Don't listen to him. He's only trying to get you to come back for more, that rotten old man" Kiba said. "I HEARD THAT!" Teuchi boomed.  
"I gotta go now," Kiba said when they were outside. "I have to go give a mission report to the Hokage." "You got back from the mission today?" she asked surprised. "No, we got back yesterday, but Shikamaru was too lazy to go, and so was I. We have to drag our half-dead bodies there today though, or we really _will_ be dead. That Kakashi can be really scary when he wants to!" They both laughed. "Bye!" she said. "Bye!" Kiba said. Akamaru barked his goodbye. **(A/N: Once again, forgot he was there.)**

 ****"Oh wait!" Kiba said suddenly turning around. "Before I forget again, I'm Kiba!" "Kiba? Inuzuka Kiba?" she asked, amazed. "Yeah, how'd you know? Someone been gossiping about me?" he asked, brows furrowing. "N-no! Not at all! Someone just mentioned your name once. Uh, he was talking about Konoha ninjas, _good_ ninjas!" she said. "Oh, well that's a relief?" Kiba grinned.

"I'm Murasaki Sumire, but you can just call me Sumi," she grinned. "That's a pretty name," Kiba complimented. Akamaru barked. "Akamaru thinks so too!" "Thanks!" she smiled. "It's kinda weird though, how I knew Akamaru's name, but not yours," she laughed. Kiba grinned down at his partner. "He has a way with the ladies, the little playboy," he teased. She laughed again. "See you soon, then!" she said. "You too."

* * *

 **Ah, that was fun! Three chapters in one day is good, right?** **  
** **I named Sumi after the color of her highlights. Sumire means "violet" while Murasaki means "purple".** **  
** **Hmm, I hope this chapter wasn't too deep or anything! Oh well! See you next update!**


	4. Chapter 4: Cooking Up A Storm

**Hey every one! Sorry I'm late! Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter Four: Cooking Up a Storm

Sumire looked up from her work. Someone was knocking at her door. Probably that little old lady that lived next to her. She didn't know anyone else, anyway. She was wrong. Kiba grinned at her. "Konnichiwa!" he said cheerfully. "Kiba-kun! Wh-what are you doing here?" she gasped.

Kiba dug his hands into his pockets. "Hmm? I thought you'd be happier to see me..." he said. "Of course I'm happy!" Sumi blurted. Then she blushed and murmured "I'm just surprised. How'd you know I live here?" "We don't get newcomers very often. Of course the people here would notice!" Kiba explained, grinning. "Oh," Sumi ducked her head. "So, um, what's up?"

Kiba bent down so his head was right in front of her face, making her blush deeper. "You have something I want," he said quietly. "Huh?" she stammered. "Or rather, there's something you can do for me," Kiba stated. She turned her head, embarrassed by the closeness. "What is it?" she asked. "I'm hungry!" Kiba announced.

"Baka! You could've just told me that from the beginning!" she protested. Kiba laughed. "Where's the fun in that?!" Sumi shoved him. "Get out!" she commanded. "But I'm hungry!" Kiba whined. "Akamaru is too!" At the mention of his name, Akamaru came into Sumi's view and knocked her down in a dog-hug. "Well hello to you too!" she giggled. "Are you hungry?" Akamaru barked in agreement. "Okay okay," she laughed.

Kiba folded his arms. "You'll listen to Akamaru, but not me?" he scoffed. "Why not? Akamaru's special. Aren't you, boy?" she cooed, petting Akamaru as he barked and wagged his tail. "Hmph!" Kiba said. "But why are you coming to me? Your sister makes awesome food!" Sumi asked him. "Isn't it obvious?" Kiba grinned. "Hana and Mom have been cooking for me all my life. But _you_ haven't."

"How are you sure you'll like it?" Sumi demanded. "I'm not," Kiba shrugged. "I'll take the chance." "You're so rude!" Sumi huffed. "And yet, you're smiling," Kiba smirked. _Can't deny that,_ Sumi thought. "Fine," she said aloud. "But you'll have to help me." "Wait...what?!"

Sumi dragged Kiba into her kitchen, where she was working before she was so rudely interrupted. "I'm baking a cake," she said, gesturing at the ingredients on the counter. "Cool? Someone's birthday coming up?" Kiba asked. "Not really. Just felt like it," Sumi shrugged. She turned to Kiba with her hands on her hips. "So. What do you want?" she asked. "Up to you," Kiba said.

"Great," Sumi said. She opened a small closet and pulled out two aprons. She tied the blue one around her waist and handed the pink one to Kiba. "Why do I get the pink one?!" he complained. "Cos the blue one is my favourite!" Sumi said matter-of-factly. "What is this? Sparkly pink hearts?" Kiba moaned, staring at the design. Sumi giggled.

"Now, down to business," she announced, her voice taking a bossy tone. "Akamaru, can you run to the stores and buy rainbow-colored food dye?" Akamaru barked in agreement. "Thanks!" Sumi tied some money in a small purse and Akamaru took it in his mouth before running out.

"Kiba-kun! You mix the dough!" she said. "Yeah, but not in _this_ thing!" Kiba said, holding out the pink apron like it was something he picked from the dumpster. "I suggest you do if you don't want to destroy those leather clothes of yours," Sumi said, hands on her hips. "Fine..." Kiba sighed. "I'm never gonna live this down," he sighed silently. Sumi giggled.

She then got to work bring out the ingredients for sukiyaki and a couple of side dishes. "You like onigiri?" she asked Kiba. "I eat anything," he answered distractedly. In the 30 seconds she'd turned her back, Kiba had already gotten flour everywhere! She giggled at the mess he'd made. "What are you doing?" "Uh...making dough like a pro," he muttered, glaring at the bowl in his hands as if it owed him money. Sumi giggled again. "Just because it rhymes doesn't mean it's true," she said.

"This flour is defective," Kiba complained, trying to pull his mixing spoon out of the bowl. "Mattaku! You turned it into paste!" Sumi sighed. "I can't believe you can't even make dough!" "I grew up with women who do everything for me. What'd you expect?!" Kiba said, rolling his eyes. Sumi folded her arms. "Well in that case, Kiba-kun, welcome to Cooking 101!" she declared. "Say what?"

 **Short Time Skip**

"Oh, sounds like Akamaru's back!" Sumi sang, skipping to the door. "Finally! A break!" Kiba sighed, slumping on the wall. Sumi had tried to teach him 4 years worth of culinary school in 30 minutes. "What took you so long?" Sumi asked Akamaru. Akamaru barked. Sumi giggled nervously. "Sorry, I didn't quite get that..." "He said that all the stores he went to first were all out," Kiba translated.

"That's amazing," Sumi breathed. "What is?" Kiba asked. "You understand him. And you're so loyal to each other. If only I had a connected that strong," she sighed. Kiba laughed. "You can get a dog of your own, ya know," he suggested. Sumi smirked. "Sure...but we have to finish our work here first!" Kiba groaned.

"If you pack it like that, it'll be too strong!" Sumi scolded. "I wasn't built for this," Kiba complained. "Akamaru's doing pretty well," Sumi pointed out. "You told him to line up the eggs! _Anyone_ can do that!" Kiba whined. "And anyone can make onigiri. Try again!" Sumi ordered.

When Kiba finally finished all the onigiri, Sumi taught him how to slice the meat, vegetables, mushrooms, tofu and shirataki for the sukiyaki. Then she helped him measure out the dry ingredients for her cake. "Ya know, I came here to eat, not to cook!" Kiba whined for the hundredth time. " ' _He who works in the sun during the day can rest easy in the shade at night,'_ " she said. "You can cook _and_ quote people! There's no end to your talents!" Kiba quipped. She hit him on the shoulder. "Ow!" "Shut up. I know that didn't really hurt."

 **Another Time Skip**

"Phew! Finally done!" Kiba sighed, falling backwards on Sumi's couch. "We haven't iced the cake yet," Sumi protested. "No way. You do it!" Kiba said. "If I do it alone, you won't taste that cake," Sumi bargained. "Akamaru will though," she added. "You are one sneaky little fox," Kiba sighed, giving up. "Thank you! I'll take that as a compliment," Sumi smiled, standing up.

They headed back to the kitchen and Sumi brought out the very large, un-iced cake. She and Kiba made the frosting and finally, they were done. " _Now_ can I eat?" Kiba pleaded. Sumi laughed. "Sure!"

Sumi set out the sukiyaki and onigiri on her small table and she and Kiba took seats opposite each other. "Itadakimasu!" they both said. Akamaru whined. "Oh! How could I forget about you?" Sumi smiled, and set down a bowl of assorted meats for Akamaru.

"Wow! This is good!" Kiba exclaimed, stuffing his face. "Glad you like it, but ya know...you made it too," Sumi blushed. "Yeah, but only cos I was doing exactly what you told me to do. Naruto would be all over this!" Kiba commented. "Naruto? He's your blonde friend, no?" Sumi asked. "My _annoying_ blonde _comrade_ ," Kiba corrected.

Kiba told her about Naruto and most of his friends. "I don't have many friends," Sumi sighed. "Why not?" Kiba asked. "You're a great girl!" Sumi blushed again. "I'm glad you think so. Not everyone is as nice as you though. Where I grew up, it's every man for himself. Er..girl," she said. "I did have _one_ friend though. I haven't heard from her since I moved." Kiba noticed that she was getting uncomfortable. "It doesn't matter. You're here now! People in Konoha are nice! I'm sure you'll be able to make friends. Though unfortunately, I don't think any of them will be as awesome as me!"

Sumi giggled. "Full of yourself much?" she teased. "Thanks, Sumi. I have to go now," Kiba said, standing up. "A mission?" Sumi asked. "Yeah, I'm meeting a bunch of Chuunin right about now, so I thought I'd drop bye and let you know," Kiba explained. "Thanks! That was nice of you," Sumi said. "Sure. I didn't want to leave you broken-hearted if you didn't see me tomorrow," Kiba added. Sumi shoved him. "My heart won't get broken _that_ easily!" "Ah. So you _have_ already fallen for me," Kiba said, his eye twinkling. "You wish!" Sumi scoffed.

"Take care!" she called, waving as Kiba and Akamaru left. She closed the door and was about to go back to her when realization hit her: "He didn't help me clean up the mess he made!"

 **Hey! Hope you liked this chapter! Between you and me though, I would never eat sukiyaki because you have to dip it in raw egg to eat it!**

 **Sorry for taking so long to update! Please review! No really, please do! Thanks in advance! *hopeful***


	5. Chapter 5: Yumegakure Bandits

**Enjoy!~**

Chapter Five: Yumegakure Bandits

Kiba let himself into Sumi's home. "Hey, didn't you hear me knocking?" he called, strolling in with Akamaru at his heels. "The door was unlocked, wasn't it?" Sumi's voice retorted. "That's dangerous, ya know," Kiba said, following the sound of her voice into the kitchen. She was sitting at a small, round table covered with flyers and magazines. "You're the only one that comes here," Sumi defended.

"What's all that?" Kiba asked, peeking over her shoulder. "Haha. It's just good ol' job hunting," Sumi sighed. "Job hunting?" Kiba cocked his head, looking like a confused puppy. "Money doesn't grow on trees, ya know!" Sumi scoffed. "Why don't you try Ichiraku's?" Kiba suggested. "Yeah, that was my first choice since business is really good there, and cooking is one of my strong points," Sumi sighed. "But that girl, Ayame, is the owner's daughter isn't she?"

"Yeah. Why?" Kiba asked. "I feel like I'd be intruding on a family business. Even if they _do_ hire me or anything, it'd be really uncomfortable for me," Sumi explained. "My friend Tenten owns a weapons shop," Kiba suggested. "I'm not good with that kind of stuff..." Akamaru barked. "He says you should open your own food place," Kiba translated. Sumi laughed as she petted Akamaru. "That's a great suggestion, but starting a business is risky. I'd rather not take such chances right now."

"How long have you been sitting here?" Kiba asked finally, noticing how exhausted Sumi seemed. "I lost track of time…" Sumi murmured. "Okay then! You're taking a break with me!" Kiba announced. "That sounds dangerous," Sumi shuddered. "Ouch," Kiba grinned. "I'm just gonna pretend I didn't hear that."

A short while later, Sumi and Kiba were walking down the path to the village gate. "So where exactly are you taking me?" Sumi asked. "Along on my mission," Kiba said nonchalantly. Sumi froze. "What?" "Relax, it's not a big mission. Plus, it's solo, so I'd be lonely," Kiba shrugged, as if that was explanation enough. "So what, I'm just gonna be there to lend you moral support or something?" Sumi fumed. "Yeah, pretty much," Kiba replied.

Sumi inhaled and exhaled slowly. "Okay, so what's the mission?" she asked. "It's actually chuunin or genin rank, but I'm feeling lazy, so I'm doing it anyway," Kiba said. "That wasn't my question," Sumi growled dangerously. "Okay okay, jeez," Kiba laughed. "There's been a bunch of reports about bandits appearing at the border of the Land of Fire," he explained. "My mission is to suppress them and turn them in to the Yumegakure officials."

"Where's Yumegakure?"Sumi asked. "At the border, of course," Kiba said. "They have a lot of weird places, like the _Forest of Mythic Beasts_ , the _Hill of Illusions_ and the _Three-Heads Prison_." "T-the Forest of Mythic Beasts?" Sumi stuttered. "Relax. There are only really huge insects and an exiled clan there. I heard the Amagiri guard it pretty strongly too, so we can't even get in if we wanted to," Kiba grinned.

"You seem pretty cool with this whole thing," Sumi observed. "What if the bandits turn out to be stronger than you anticipated?" "Well, reports say there're only five of them, and they attack only travelling women and take their purses and stuff. Piece of cake," Kiba bragged. "Wait…you're not planning on using me as bait, are you?" Sumi questioned, raising an eyebrow accusingly at him. "What? No! Of course not!' Kiba faltered. "Unless, of course, if you want to…" "Kiba!" "I'm kidding!" Kiba laughed.

"I'm not sure I should trust you," Sumi sighed. Akamaru nudged her leg. "Akamaru doesn't think I should trust you either, but what the heck." Kiba grinned triumphantly, while Akamaru just shook his head.

* * *

Sumi grew tired of walking within two hours of leaving the Konoha gate, so Kiba put her on top of Akamaru so they could leap through the trees like shinobi normally would. "Are we there yet?" Sumi moaned for the hundredth time that day. "I told you we'd get there in about a day," Kiba said, an anime vein popping on his forehead. "I was right. I shouldn't have trusted you!" Sumi complained. "You're not even doing anything!" Kiba sighed. "Well, so- _rry_!" Sumi shot back.

They bickered the rest of the way there, and reached Yumegakure just as the sun was setting. "You wanna find an inn in the village, or would you rather camp out?" Kiba asked Sumi. Sumi took one look at the fog-filled Forest of Mythic Beasts surrounding the village and the answer was obvious.

"Ya know, I didn't mean the Beasty-Forest when I mentioned camping," Kiba said once they had gotten a room. "I didn't see any other obvious camping spot," Sumi said. "We could've stayed by the spot the bandits usually appear. It's not far from here," Kiba said. "Yeah. I'd love to sleep in a place where bandits roam," Sumi deadpanned sarcastically. Then she stood up and began to push Kiba out of the room. "Get out. I wanna change!" she commanded. "Jeez. Okay, I'm leaving," Kiba mumbled, embarrassed. Akamaru followed him. After all, he was a guy too.

Since Kiba hadn't exactly mentioned that they would be staying overnight, Sumi hadn't bothered bringing any other clothes. Luckily, this inn provided extra nightclothes. Opening the wooden closet in the corner, she found two: a nightgown for a girl and a loose kimono for a guy. She pulled the gown over her head. It wasn't really her style: it was plain white and frilly., Oh well, it was just for one night.

Kiba took one look at her and burst out laughing. "Oh, shut up," Sumi muttered. Kiba didn't bother chasing her out to put on his kimono. "Hey! There's a girl in here!" Sumi protested, throwing Akamaru at him. "I didn't tell you to watch," Kiba said rolling his eyes. Sumi turned bright red and marched out the door, telling him to alert her when he was done.

She stood outside for 30 minutes, before suspecting something was wrong. Opening the door, she saw that Kiba had already spread out his futon and was sleeping soundly, with Akamaru curled by his feet. "Bakayarou," Sumi sighed. "I hope you have the most horrible nightmare!" she whispered as she rolled out the other futon on the other side of the room.

* * *

When Sumi woke up the next morning, it was already really bright. Sitting up, she noticed Kiba and Akamaru were gone. "Those two…did the go for that mission without me?" she wondered. Truthfully, she was pleased. She wasn't sure she wanted to deal with women-harassing bandits. With a contented sigh, she stood up and began to tidy up, then tied a towel around her waist under another female bath-kimono, getting ready to find her way to the hot springs. Just then, Kiba burst into the room with Akamaru. Kiba's hair was still slightly wet. "Oh, you're up," Kiba said, as if noticing her for the first time. "Duh! Where did you guys go? Why didn't you wake me?" Sumi demanded.

"Well, you looked so peaceful, I didn't wanna bother you," Kiba explained. "Plus, we have a lot of time. You can head to the baths now, if you want. You can even spend a whole hour there if you want. I don't mind," Kiba offered, sensing her anger. Sumi softened, then sighed. "I can't spend that long. When are you planning on leaving?" "Shortly before noon. There are no records of attacks before then," Kiba answered. "Okay! I'll be speedy!" Sumi called before dashing out.

When she returned a while later, Kiba had already ordered breakfast. "Itadakimasu!" they chorused. All the minor things taken care of, they set out to complete their-actually, Kiba's-mission.

"So what's the plan?" Sumi asked. "Beat the living daylights out of them, then haul them to prison," Kiba chuckled. Akamaru barked in agreement."Mattaku," Sumi sighed, massaging her temples. As they approached the village temple, they noticed a boy a bit younger than their age waiting for them. He was wearing the Yumegakure forehead protector {zzz} and normal ninja clothes. "Inuzuka Kiba-san, desu ka?" he asked as they got closer. "The one and only," Kiba grinned.

The boy let out a sigh of relief. "Oh good, I thought I'd missed you," he breathed. "I'm Shinjurou Tenrō," he introduced. "You are here to take care of the bandit problem, no?" "That's right," Kiba said. "Before you go, please come with me to Chief Tenrō," Shinjurou said. "Ah, crap! I forgot!" Kiba groaned.

"Who's Chief Tenrō?" Sumi whispered as they followed the boy back. "The village chief," Kiba answered. "I was supposed to announce my presence first, just like how you have to report to the Hokage when you come back from a mission." "Ah."

Soon enough, they were before the so-called chief. He was younger than they'd expected. He was probably a new chief. "The bandits are not directly related to us in Yume, but our allies, the Hidden Leaf, have asked us to take care of them, so we are pleased to oblige," the Chief said. He gestured to Shinjurou. "He will accompany you on your mission and assist you in bringing the criminals back to the village," the Chief said.

"That's great!" Sumi exclaimed, relieved. "Just great," Kiba said at the same time, not pleased that he had to have someone helping him. "I can lead you to their normal spot," Shijurou offered. "I already know the spot, but I guess a local leading me will make it faster," Kiba relented. "Great! Let's go and get this over with!" Sumi cheered.

 **Short time skip**

"I'm sorry!" Shinjurou said. "Huh?" Kiba looked up. They had long since left the village and Shinjurou was leading them to the bandit spot. "Sorry for what?" Sumi asked. "I'm a bother, aren't I? You didn't want me coming along!" Shinjurou wailed. "Take a chill pill, dude. Nobody said that," Kiba said, screwing a pinky into his ear. "Yeah. Your help is much appreciated," Sumi encouraged.

"I'm sorry," Shinjurou said. "My older brother keeps sending me on missions like this to make me stronger." "Your brother is the chief, right?" Sumi guessed. "Yeah. He became one recently. He's the strongest in the village," Shinjurou sniffed. "I'm always stuck in his shadow. I know I can never reach his level, but he insists on pushing me." "At least you have an older brother who cares," Sumi said. Akamaru barked in agreement. Shinjurou smiled gratefully.

"We're almost there," Shinjurou announced. "Before you start though, I'd like to inform you: recently, these bandits started taking the actual women too." "Recently? How is that possible? I just got this mission yesterday," Kiba asked. "Yes, but the request was actually sent a week ago by a nearby village. It probably got delayed, or maybe the Hokage was too busy to deal with it until now," Shinjurou revealed. "The day after the request was sent, a woman and her daughter coming to our village to see family went missing. 3 other similar events has occurred in the last week, so there are a total of 7 missing females."

"So I can't just pummel these guys. I have to pummel them and force them to lead me to their hideout!" Kiba groaned. "The probability of that plan working is slim to none," Shinjurou sighed. "Thieves are surprisingly loyal." "We could wait for them to appear, capture someone, then follow them to their hideout," Sumi suggested. "Actually, a message has been sent to most villages around here to stop travelling through this road until further notice, so the chances of that are also slim," Shinjurou sighed.

They all kept quiet, wondering if there was a solution to this at all. Then Sumi remembered she and Kiba's conversation back in Konoha:

" _Wait…you're not planning on using me as bait, are you?"_

 _Sumi questioned, raising an eyebrow accusingly at him._

" _What? No! Of course not!' Kiba faltered. "Unless, of course, if you want to…"_

"I'll do it!" Sumi declared. Shinjurou, Kiba and Akamaru looked up at her, confused. "Do what?" Kiba asked. "I'll act as bait for you guys!" she explained. "No way!" Kiba said. "That would be too dangerous, Sumire-san!" Shinjurou protested. "But there's no other way!" Sumi argued. "Plus, I can take care of myself! I'm not a kid and you're not my older brothers!" "Still, who knows what horrible things they might do to you while we're still trying to find you?" Shinjurou questioned worriedly.

Sumi shuddered mildly at the thought but quickly shrugged it off. "I can defend myself. Plus, I trust you, Kiba-kun. Don't you trust me?" Kiba blinked at the new suffix. "Sure I do," he mumbled. "Then you'll let me do this," Sumi stated firmly. "You helped me before. It's my turn to help you." Kiba sighed. "Fine. But you better not get hurt, or else!" Sumi giggled.

"So we need a plan," Shinjurou said. "I and Akamaru will sense when the enemy is approaching," Kiba said. "That's a good thing. At precisely that moment, Sumire-san will begin her fake journey down this path, with me, Akamaru-san and Kiba-san hiding up in the trees. Once the bandits make their move, Kiba-san and I will jump down and pretend to attack. Of course, we will let them think they'd defeated us and let them take Sumire-san away. We'll then send for reinforcements, just in case, follow them, sneak in, release the captives and arrest the thieves." Shinjurou explained.

"In another scenario, the thieves might decide to take us captive as well. In that case, we put up a petty fight and let the thieves take us away. We'll probably be presented to the boss-thief first, but they will most likely eventually put us in a holding cell. Once we're behind bars, I can use my metal-style to get us out. I'm also equipped with poisons that can knock out the guards in seconds. We then threaten one of them, the youngest we can find, into leading us to the captives. After letting the captives and Sumire-san out, we go back and face the boss. The rest will have to be decided once we get there," Shinjurou finished.

Sumi, Kiba and Akamaru stared at him, in shock. "You're really smart, thinking up two separate scenarios like that," Sumi said finally. "Are you sure you're not Shikamaru's long-lost younger brother?" Kiba asked. "Haha! The only brother I have is the beloved Chief of Yume," Shinjurou said, blushing slightly. Akamaru barked respectfully at Shinjurou, who looked a bit frightened because, of course, he didn't understand the language of the dogs. "Okay, this mission is a go!" Sumi cheered.

"Matte-kudasai, Sumire-san," Shinjurou said. He pulled up one of his sleeves, revealing rows and rows of different liquids strapped to his arm. He carefully picked out one that was light green and produced a needle. "This is a general poison that nullifies any other poison that may enter your body within 10 hours. Who knows what the bandits do to their victims." "A poison that destroys other poisons? Why do I feel worried about this?" Sumi giggled nervously. "Don't fret. It's name is _Boushi Poison_ , but it's more of a vaccine than a poison," Shinjurou explained.

"Are you a medical ninja?" Kiba asked. "No, but I do have a little knowledge on medical ninjutsu because my mother was one," Shinjurou answered, swiftly inserting the needle into Sumi's skin while she was distracted. "Ouch!" she yelped, making Akamaru jump. "Sorry," Shinjurou apologized, although he didn't look sorry at all. After all, it was for her own good. He injected himself and Kiba with the same medicine. "Okay, done. Let's work well together!"

The trio (oh, I mean quartet-sorry Akamaru!) made their way to the usual bandit spot. Sumi pretended to be a travelling girl resting in the shade while Shinjurou, Kiba and Akamaru hid in the trees a bit farther away, watching her intently. "It's windy here. It'll be hard to pick up their scent," Kiba whispered. "That must be why they chose this spot," Shinjurou replied. Akamaru let out a low whine. "Akamaru senses someone coming," Kiba hissed. "Five people!" "That matches the number on the reports," Shinjurou whispered excitedly. "This'll be a piece of cake."

Shinjurou whipped out a scroll, scribbled a message, then gave it to a carrier hawk that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. "My Nii-san will see this message. The plan is to send another message once we reach the thieves' hideout. This message says that if he doesn't receive another message by the end of the day, something has happened to us. He'll then send some people to this spot, and they'll track us from here," he explained to Kiba. "Way to plan ahead," Kiba grinned.

Shinjurou released the hawk. Looking up, Sumi saw a large brown hawk with a single purple feather flying in the direction of the village. That was her signal. She stood up, gathering her fake belongings that Shinjurou had summoned for her. She moved out of the shade and began walking down the forbidden path, as if she hadn't a care in the world.

Sumi glimpsed a male figure all in black behind the bushes and tightened her grip on her bag. _This is it…_ Once she neared the figure, it leaped out at her, and grabbed her bag. "No!" she screamed. Another figure appeared from behind and kicked her down. A third figure grabbed her bigger bag. The fourth one began to tie her up while she wailed and screamed.

 _Sumi's a pretty good actress_ , Kiba thought. _Unless, she really is terrified!_ "Now!" Shinjurou hissed, and he, Kiba and Akamaru leapt from their hiding places. The fourth had already finished tying up Sumi, so Kiba headed for him first. "Ga Tsuuga!" he yelled, performing his combo attack with Akamaru. Shinjurou attacked the third and second men, while Kiba kicked the first one hard in the gut. "I thought there were five! Where's the last one?" Shinjurou panicked.

He and Kiba looked around, watching each other's backs. Kiba tried to find a fifth scent when suddenly, Shinjurou collapsed. "Shinjurou!" Kiba yelled, alarmed. Something hard hit him at the side of the head and he too joined Shinjurou on the ground. "Ittai…" he moaned. The fifth bandit finally appeared, gathering up his fallen comrades and the struggling Sumi. He lifted up his hand and threw a smoke bomb on the ground.

Kiba and Shinjurou coughed, while Akamaru buried his nose in the ground. When the smoke cleared, the bandits were gone, along with Sumi!

 **Yumegakure no Sato- The Village Hidden Among Dreams**

 **Mattaku- "jeez", "gosh", "what amI going to do with you?"**

 **Matte-kudasai-a polite way of asking someone to wait**

 **Boushi- it means prevention or check. It seemed like a good name for Shinjurou's poison-medicine**

 **Yeah! I'm back, baby! This is the longest chapter so far with over 3,100 words! What happens next, I wonder? Hint: The more you review and comment, the faster I'll update ;)**


	6. Chapter 6: Something's Wrong

**To be frank, I was seriously disappointed at the comments turn out. I mean, I expect something more than "please update soon." That doesn't tell me anything, whether you like it, nothing! It's really discouraging to see so many hits, but so little comments!** **Anyway, here's the next chapter.**

Chapter Six: Something's Wrong…

"They left a scent at least," Kiba said, staring at the spot Sumi had once been. "Can you track them?" Shinjurou asked. "Of course! There's nothing I can't do!" Kiba grinned, and Akamaru barked his agreement. "Especially when it involves Sumire-san, right?" Shinjurou smirked. Kiba eyed him warily. "Don't go assuming weird things," he said simply. "I'm sorry!" Shinjurou immediately responded, bowing his head. Kiba rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go. The scent is dissipating quickly for some reason," he said, following Akamaru who had already began tracking Sumi. "Must be effects of the smoke bomb…" Shinjurou mumbled, following them.

Elsewhere, Sumi was bordering between conscious and unconscious. "Oi! Wake up!" a gruff voice commanded. She blinked, trying to clear her blurred vision. The smoke bomb had some kind of poison that rendered her senses inactive, but only for a moment. Shinjurou's poison-medicine must be working. She blinked once more and tried to get her bearings.

She was sitting on an earthen floor, leaning against a wall. Two of her captors stood before her with annoyed expressions on their faces. She snapped to reality. She was captured, in the thieves den. She accessed her guard dogs; she could take them easily from the looks of things, but then that would mess up her chances to get information from them, and Kiba and Shinjurou's chances to "rescue" her. She sighed internally. Oh well, playing the maiden in distress wasn't a new thing.

She looked up at her captors with huge eyes. "W-where am I?" she stammered. "Ah, so she speaks," one chuckled. That made Sumi wonder just how long she had been out. "No where you need to be concerned with," the other said curtly. She recognized his voice as the one which snapped her to reality. He was much younger than the other, probably only a few years older than Sumi herself. Both thieves still kept most of their faces hidden behind black masks, but Sumi could see the sparkling blue eyes on the face of the older one, and annoyed onyx eyes on the younger one. _Cool and Baka_ , Sumi thought. That was her nickname for them, she decided.

"You captured me," Sumi whimpered. "Yeah, sorry about that," Baka laughed, and Cool elbowed him hard. "You don't _apologize_ to your prisoners!" he hissed. "But why? I heard about the thieves, but I thought they only took belongings?" Sumi asked, suppressing her laughter. Cool narrowed his eyes at her. "If you knew there were thieves, then why did you come?" he asked.

Oops. "I _had_ to get to Yumegakure, I just had to! I haven't seen my brother in so long!" she wailed, letting a few tears form at the corners of her eyes. "Well, that was stupid," Baka chuckled. "I took only invaluable stuff that wouldn't affect me in any way if they were stolen," Sumi defended. "Hmm, not so stupid after all," Cool stated. "The Boss will like you." _Boss? As expected, they probably weren't random bandits._

"Are you sure we have to give her to the Boss? She's cute! I thought we could keep her to oursel-" Baka was stopped with a swift elbow to the stomach, courtesy of Cool. Sumi shuddered, wondering what kind of sick things Baka had planned. "Alright, stand up. It won't do you any good to keep on rolling around in the dirt like that," Cool sighed, offering his hand to Sumi. Sumi stood up on her own, and Cool frowned. "I demand to see this Boss of yours!" she declared. Baka laughed. "Spunky, isn't she?" he chuckled.

Cool was clearly still miffed about his ignored _gentlemanly_ gesture. "Indeed. Do tell, what do you plan to do when you meet the Boss?" he asked, a cold undertone to his voice. "I'll ask him to release me! I'm sure he'll agree if I ask nicely!" Baka laughed harder and Cool smirked. "We'll just have to wait and see," he said simply. "For now, you'll just have to make do with the other girls." Sumi pouted, then sighed as if giving up. "Fine. But at least give me _your_ names. I can't call you Cool and Baka forever."

Cool raised an eyebrow. "Baka?" he asked. Baka grinned. "Cool?" he asked. Oops. Did she say that out loud? They got it totally mixed up, anyway. "Well, if you insist, I'm Boke," the older one said with a mock bow. "I am Fujimaru," the other said simply. "And you are?" "Emiko," Sumi answered. "Well then, Emiko, follow me," Fujimaru commanded. "Okay," Sumi said uncertainly. If she could get to the other girls, she would be able to rally them all up and have them ready when Kiba and Shinjurou came. Fujimaru took her hand and tucked it in the crook of his elbow. _Okay, definitely too gentlemanly_ , Sumi thought.

Boke walked away, and Fujimaru turned in the opposite direction, dragging Sumi along. He made multiple turns and walked very quickly, making it hard for Sumi to keep up, and pretty soon, she had completely lost track of where they were.

This place was definitely underground, from the caked-earth- _mud?_ -walls and earthen floors with lanterns hanging from the wall. They didn't bump into anyone else, which Sumi thought was strange. After a few more confusing turns, Fujimaru stopped in front of a large door. "The other girls are here?" Sumi asked cautiously. Fujimaru smirked down at her. "I'm sure you'll fit right in," he said coolly. "That's the least of my worries," Sumi muttered under her breath. Fujimaru smirked once more and turned to leave. Maybe she could wait for him to leave then sneak out after him.

"One more thing," Fujimaru said, stopping. He turned only his head around and pulled down his mask to reveal a creepy smile and a much younger and attractive face than expected. " _Escape is futile_." Well there goes _that_ idea.

Else where, Kiba, Shinjurou and Akamaru were still tracking Sumi's scent. "I hope she's okay," Shinjurou fidgeted as he leapt through the trees after Kiba. "We've been tracking them for quite a while. We probably should've checked out the place we last saw them. There must've been an escape route there. It would make sense, since they appear in the same place each time." "Quit whinin' about the past, kid," Kiba complained, getting tired of hearing his voice. "We can't turn back now. Plus, we're getting closer." Shinjurou sighed. "But what if we're too late? What if those bandits actually a crazy cult who uses females as sacrifices? What if they sold them all? What if they used them as human targets for target practice? What if they defile them? Oh, poor Sumire-san! Who knows what she's going through? What if-" "ENOUGH!" Kiba yelled.

Shinjurou, startled, shut his mouth. Kiba had stopped moving and was leaning against a tree, breathing heavily, but not because of exhaustion. His face was red as he processed what Shinjurou had just said. "Thanks for putting all those images in my head," he hissed at Shinjurou. "I'm sorry," Shinjurou whimpered, the corners of his eyes already forming tears. Kiba shook his head. "Why am I always surrounded by idiots?" he muttered, thinking of Naruto. He could almost hear Ino saying "Look who's talking." Akamaru whined, and Kiba snapped out of his reverie. "Let's go," he told Shinjurou, taking off immediately. He moved pretty fast this time…

Sumi sighed and opened the door. She expected the other girls behind cages, to look up at her with huge, sad, pleading eyes, eyes that she knew more than she cared to admit. Boke and Fujimaru had hinted that the Boss would like her. Maybe that's why she was let in without chains and handcuffs or something. She'd be able to do this, though. She'd be able to help these girls. She'd be able to-

"Hello!" a cheery voice cut into her thoughts. Sumi's eyes shot open. Three women and four young girls looked back at her with curious looks. "You're a pretty one!" one of the women cooed. Sumi blinked, confused. These could _not_ be the captured girls. The room was bright, a very sharp contrast to the dimly lit corridors she'd come from. It was also very large. She could see five bunk beds behind the stunningly bright smiles the girls gave her, a couple of couches in another corner, and they were standing in what was obviously a kitchen.

After gawking for 10 full seconds, Sumi found her voice. "Um, you wouldn't happen to have been captured by a bunch of thieves dressed in all black, were you?" she asked, feeling stupid. They'd laugh at her, and tell her that they were cooks. Maybe maids. Heck, maybe even thieves themselves! "Why, yes we are!" the oldest woman there said. _Okay…_

"Well, I'm here to save you guys!" Sumi said excitedly. "My friends will be here any minute now. Get ready to-" "Do not call us _guys_. How distasteful," one of the girls said, covering her mouth as if the word left a bitter taste there. Sumi gaped. "That's what bothers you most in this scenario?" she asked incredulously. "It's the _only_ thing that bothers me," the girl said with a cheerful smile on her face. Sumi face-palmed. "Don't you want to go home? To your families? Everyone's making a big deal about your disappearances, you know!" she tried.

"But why would we want to go home?" the youngest girl there asked. "We have Seiji-sama here!" "Seiji-sama?" Sumi asked, confused. "Yes. He's only the most handsome, beautiful, gorgeous creature on Earth!" one of the girls sighed dreamily. "I believe the rogues refer to him as 'Boss'," one of the women said, wrinkling her nose at the title. "You guys…uh, girls, are all here because you're smitten with this 'Seiji'?" Sumi asked. "And he is equally smitten with us," the last girl said. Sumi sighed. Something was wrong here. Something was _very_ wrong.

Kiba and Akamaru came to a sudden stop. Shinjurou stopped too. They had long since left the forest and were now running in a large open clearing. "What's wrong, Kiba-san?" Shinjurou asked cautiously. Akamaru whined. "You too, pal?" Kiba asked, looking down at his partner. 'What is it?" Shinjurou whimpered, a uneasy feeling of dread creeping into his mind. "Sumi, her scent, the thieves' scent, they're gone."

 **Hoped you liked this chapter! The ironic thing is that both baka and Boke mean idiot.**

 **Now that the formalities are over, I really have to say: I have over a hundred reads on each of my chapters. But I have practically ZERO comments! Seriously guys -and girls- it takes, like,** _ **30 seconds**_ **to scroll to the bottom of the page and type 'I really like this chapter'. It wouldn't kill anyone, and it definitely won't hurt me! I crave comments! I'm sure many of my readers are writers too, and you should be able to understand where I'm coming from!  
Yeah, well, sorry for wasting your time with these extra authors' notes, but please heed my plea. This time, I'm ready to wait a whole month before I update, that is, when I get at least 10 comments!**

 **Stay tuned! And** _ **please**_ **review!**


	7. Chapter 7: The Boss

**I was supposed to wait till I got 10 comments before I posted again, but I got 7 comments faster than I expected, so I decided to let the others off the hook for now (on Quotev, not on FanFiction –I post my fics on two different sites, but I think I'll delete my account on FanFiction since they** ** _never_** **comment!)**

Chapter Seven: The Boss

"What do you mean 'gone'?" Shinjurou asked worriedly. "Exactly what it sounds like," Kiba said dryly. Akamaru began sniffing around in circles, searching for the missing sent. "Not that I'm the expert on tracking here, but that's not supposed to be possible, unless they disappeared into thin air," Shinjurou stated. "Now's not the time for smart-ass comments," Kiba grumped. "Of course they didn't disappear. I've never heard of anyone who could use that jutsu since that Madara dude, maybe Kakashi too."

"Are you speaking of Hatake Kakashi, the Copy Ninja?" Shinjurou asked excitedly. "Sure," Kiba mumbled, ignoring him while trying to find Sumi's trail again. "Weird, I can still get it here..." he mumbled. "We used to hear legends of him as kids! Who'd ever heard of a non-Uchiha with a Sharingan?!" Shinjurou was still gushing. "So I can still get her here, but if I turn here..." Kiba mumbled. "His Chidori is legendary! And even before that, I heard he was good with Earth-style!" Shinjurou went on, oblivious.

"Earth style! That's it!" Kiba exclaimed suddenly. Akamaru cocked his head to one side and Shinjurou stopped talking to stare at Kiba. "What's _it_?" he asked. "They're scent suddenly stopped, but it didn't disappear," Kiba said. "It was completely concealed by the earth...they're underground! The thing is...how? Those idiots are _obviously_ not shinobi." "Lots of people can do that nowadays, as long as they built a tunnel beforehand," Shinjurou suggested. "Heh, it's good having a genius around," he said, his usual grin now back in place on his face.

"I'm hardly a genius," Shinjurou began when Akamaru barked. He was over by a tree at the edge of the clearing. "What is it, boy?" Kiba asked, jogging over to his comrade with Shinurou close behind. Akamaru barked again and pawed at the tree. It was a strange tree. Well, not necessarily _strange_ because it looked like a green willow tree, but strange in the fact that it was the only tree like that there. It's long, weeping branches(?) covered most of its trunk, but there was a single arrow sticking in it. Right in the center.

"Okay, I don't get it," Kiba said, scratching his head. Shinjurou stared intently at the arrow, parting the leaves and tracing a barely-there outline on the bark. "Aha!" he cried suddenly. "Aha? Who says that anymore?" Kiba scoffed. "I was about to say that the thieves would need some type of _trigger_ to get the underground tunnel to open up. This seems to be it!" Shinjurou said excitedly. "Okay, I am officially confused," Kiba said, scratching the back of his head. "This tree isn't a real tree," Shinjurou started. "Oh, so they're defacing nature now? Double crime! Oh wait, it's triple cos they take stuff _and_ women..."

Shinjurou shook his head and continued. "This tree was crafted, probably a wood-worker, a mechanic, possibly even a puppet-style user. It serves as a switch to something, namely, the tunnel we're looking for! It seems that once they get to the point where their scents disappeared, one of them shoots and arrow straight to this point, which opens the tunnel. I think it's safe to guess that it closes after a stipulated time." Kiba nodded his head slowly. "That...kinda...sorta made sense...I think," he said.

"Anyway, if it's like you said, shouldn't there be a bunch of arrow marks on the tree, and a bunch of _arrows_ too?" Kiba asked. "Do me a favour and sniff out the path behind this tree," Shinjurou commanded more than said. Kiba and Akamaru did that. "Maybe you noticed a particular presence that seemed strongly associated with there, like how someone's room smells a lot like them, usually even after you wash everything in it?" Shinjurou asked. "Yeah, I did," Kiba answered, and Akamaru barked his agreement. "I'm thinking that they probably have someone come here to get rid of the evidence, and he comes from a different direction to throw off trackers," Shinjurou theorized.

"They sure didn't throw _you_ off," Kiba mumbled. "As for the stray arrow marks, I think they probably got a talented shot, so he shoots the arrow in exactly the same spot each time. See how deeply the arrow pierces the wood? A normal arrow wouldn't make it that deep, unless another arrow had pierced it before. See?" Shinjurou then proceeded to pull out the arrow. His predictions were spot on: the round hole the arrow left was exceptionally deep.

"So how do we get in?" Kiba asked. In reply, Shinjurou stuck the arrow back in the hole with force, and right before their very eyes, at the spot where Sumi's scent disappeared, the earth trembled and turned over like a hidden door on the ground, revealing a winding earthen staircase leading even deeper into the ground. Kiba whistled at the sight. "They sure were clever," he said. "But not clever enough. Let's go, Akamaru, Shinjurou. We don't know how long it'll stay open." Akamaru barked and pranced forward to join his partner. Shinjurou bowed his head and said "I'm sorry! The time was something I wasn't able to figure out! Forgive me!" in a really whiny voice.

Kiba paused and stared at him. "You're like a totally different person, when you're planning and not planning," he said. "I hear that a lot," Shinjurou sniffed. He obviously saw it as a bad thing. "Well, let's go. Sumi's waiting," Kiba said. He momentarily froze as he remembered all the possibilities Shinjurou had mentioned before. "Before Sumi goes through... _that_ ," he choked out, suddenly quickening. Both Akamaru and Shinjurou sweat-dropped, as if they knew exactly what he was thinking.

* * *

Sumi paced about the too-bright room. Where was that freaking light coming from anyway? Seven other females gazed at her with peaceful smiles, so peaceful, it was creepy. "Okay, so I'm stuck in a blinding room with seven girls who are supposed to be crying and longing to go home, but instead are longing to see this enigmatic _Boss person_ ," she said aloud. "If Kiba and Shinjurou don't come get me soon, either I'm busting out of here with these people whether they like it or not, or I'll go crazy!"

"Child, it is not ladylike to talk to yourself," Kourai said. She was the oldest woman there, probably in her late 30s, with beautiful golden hair. Sumi had managed to get the names out of everyone there. Kourai and Kirei, Kourai's 15 year old daughter with the same hair color, were probably the mother and daughter combo Shinjurou had mentioned. Haeru was a 28-year old brunette, and Midori, also a brunette was the youngest woman. Tomoyo, Nagi and Tama were 14, 16 and 18 with red, blue and green hair respectively.

 _Ugh! Of all the thing to take note of, it's their hair color and ages!_ Sumi scolded herself. Well, she knew that none of them, except Kourai and Kirei, knew each other before coming to this place. They all gazed at her with unseeing eyes and creepy smiles, and they all spoke formally. At first, she thought it was genjutsu. But she'd tried to release the unknown genjutsu many times and nothing happened. And her release techniques were pretty powerful too!

Her only choice now was to wait for Shinjurou and Akamaru. Oh yeah, and Kiba too, the jerk that got her in this mess in the first place! She'd really give it to him later! That is, if he didn't say something flattering and turn her into a blushing, stuttering mess. "Are you thinking?" Haeru asked. _Well, duh_. Sumi sighed. "Yeah, since you guys aren't gonna be any help." "Don't think too much. Seiji-sama is the answer to everything!" Tama giggled. Sumi rolled her eyes. Oh well, might as well pump them for information while she was at it.

"So the Boss...what's he like?" Sumi asked. "Describe him...his appearance." "Well, he's easily the most handsome man here. Clearly better than the other thugs here," Kourai said. "He has raven black hair and the darkest eyes. He's _my_ definition of tall, dark and handsome!" Tomoyo gushed. "His voice is like liquid gold," Kirei sighed, fingering her own golden hair. Sumi rolled her eyes. They sounded that they were writing a lame romance novel. _Liquid gold? Seriously?_ "So where do you go to see him?" Sumi asked.

"Oh no, we don't go to see Seiji-sama," Midori said. "We're not allowed to leave this room. Instead, Seiji-sama comes to see us." "How often does he come?" Sumi questioned. "Well, he came yesterday, so most of us have only seen him once," Nagi said, biting her lip. "But Kourai-san and Kirei-san have been here longer, and they've seen him twice. We don't know when next he'll come though." Sumi mentally face-palmed. In love after _one meeting_. Look who's talking, part of her conscience sneered at her, but she pushed her voice away. "What does he do once he comes?" she pressed on.

"Oh, he just tells us how much he loves us," Tama sighed dreamily, melting into her own private puddle of gooey-ness. "Do you have any idea why he's keeping you here?" Sumi tried. "Seiji-sama knows best," all of them said at exactly the same time. Weird.

A few more questions later, Sumi had found out all she could from the Seiji-struck females:

1\. "Seiji-sama" is to die for...literally!

2\. They only ever interacted with themselves, the Boss and a few of the "thugs."

3\. They weren't used as... _comfort women_ , for lack of a better word, by the thugs, so that was a relief.

4\. They did leave the room on occasion: to use the bathrooms, which was under their current room(Sumi didn't even want to imagine the conditions!)

Since she clearly wasn't finding out anything else, and Kiba and Shinjurou were nowhere to be found, she was busting out. "Oh, do stay, Emiko-san," Nagi pleaded. "I'll be back for you, I promise," Sumi said. Then she did something she never would've expected she would be able to do when she accepted this mission: she turned the knob, opened the door and walked out! The door wasn't locked! There weren't any guards stationed neither by the door nor down the hallway! She was actually out!

It took a second for her eyes to adjust to the dim light in the corridors. She then decided to turn the way she came with Fujimaru and Boke. There weren't many doors. Ant the few she tried were empty. She actually went into one of them, and pressing her body against a wall to see if she could hear anything on the other side, it turned over to reveal another room. It was a lab, but everything was covered with some kind of cloaking device. She would need some sort of password or jutsu to undo them, and she didn't have that time.

She left that room and continued her journey. She didn't know what exactly she was looking for. She was really hoping that she'd bump into Kiba and they'd save the girls from the weird spell they were under and knock out the thieves, then go home to Konoha and pretend this never happened. She grinned as she thought of her tiny house back in Konoha. She was surprised at how quickly she'd begun to think of Konoha as home. Maybe it was because Kiba was there?

The last thought distracted her. If not, she would've sensed the four people heading towards her before they turned the corner.

"What are you doing out here?" one asked. "Umm, I needed to use the bathroom," Sumi squeaked, cursing Kiba for distracting her, even though he wasn't actually _there_. "Didn't the others already teach them where the bathroom is?" the guy in the middle asked the first one. "She's a newbie, she probably didn't know," the third person spoke. How would he know she was new? Possibly one of the men that captured her. The last person was Boke, as Sumi immediately recognized his strangely still-sparkling blue eyes. What, did they sparkle 24/7? Boke caught her eyes...and winked!

"Turn around, Newbie-chan. You sure are cute. You wouldn't want to be wondering around in a place like this," the second spoke. "Actually, she's heading in the right direction," Boke spoke. "Hah?" All three men looked at him like he was crazy. His voice was dead serious, but his eyes still sparkled playfully as he held Sumi's gaze. Maybe he was going to help her. Then she remembered him almost suggesting to Fujimaru that they keep her to themselves, and she paled. Please let that not be what he's planning!

"She snuck out, trying to run away," Boke said, shattering all hope Sumi had been clinging to. "Orders are to take escapees straight to The Boss. The funny thing is, the Boss is interested in this particular girl and wants to meet her. It's killing two birds with one stone." Please let that be code for let's-help-her-escape! Judging by the two strong arms that grabbed her from both sides, it wasn't. "Have fun, Emiko," Boke chuckled, and disappeared into the shadows.

 _Kiba! Akamaru! Shinjurou! Now's the time to come out, you idiots!_ Sumi mentally screamed. She gouged the strength of the people holding her. She could easily take them down. But they had already approached an area with more black-clad bandits. She wasn't about to take chances with that number. Who knew how many were hiding in the shadows, like Boke? Stupid, sparkly-eyed bandit! Sumi hadn't yet seen his face, but his eyes hinted that he was worth more than being a plain old bandit. A lot more.

Finally, her new captors paused in front of a huge door. "Shuu and Mabuchi reporting with escapee, sir!" they chorused. What was this Boss, royalty? Another bandit opened the door from the inside, and her captors dragged her in. The room was large, brighter than the hallways, but not as bright as the room with the girls. It was _decorated_ , which actually came as a surprise to Sumi. If the walls were earthen, she couldn't tell. Down the middle of the room was the cliché red carpet, which led up to a throne. On the throne sat a man wearing all black, his head down, his dark hair covering any part of his face that would have been visible to Sumi.

The two bandits dragged Sumi forward and sat her down in front of the throne. Then they bowed – actually _bowed_ \- and left. "So you tried to escape?" The Boss said more than asked. That voice, it was so silky, she wanted to reach out and hug it…she recognized this voice. "Hmph! Who wouldn't? I don't know what you did to those girls. You must be really ugly and lonely to have to hypnotize them to be all 'Seiji-sama' this and 'Seiji-sama' that!"she scoffed. On the contrary," said Seiji-sama chuckled. "I'm pretty confident that I could get whatever girl I want without even trying." So familiar…like she'd just heard it today.

"Really?" Sumi sneered. "So what's with the red carpet? And the throne? You're obviously a lonely sucker with some brains who figured out that if you could get a bunch of idiots to follow you and get the praise you'd always desired!" Seiji laughed. "What a clever backstory, I might use it. But tell me, does this look like the face of a lonely sucker?"

He raised his head slowly. Sumi bit her lip in anticipation. Finally, she saw his face. It was absolutely gorgeous. She knew this face, like she thought. She was looking at the face…of…. 

**Okay, I totally wanna wait until the next chapter to reveal this, but I'll cut you guys some slack.**

…Fujimaru. 

**I'm too tired to re-read this (after all, it 12:30am), so if there are any mistakes, lemme know so I can correct them. So, did you like this chapter? Let me know cos I'm gonna wait for 15 comments this time! I don't mind postponing this chapter for a long time, ya know. I've got 3 other stories to work on, a biography project due in 9 weeks and the SAT to study for. Better react quick, chicas. In other words PLEASE COMMENT!**


	8. Chapter 8: The Power of Light

**Yo! I know, I said I'd wait for 15 comments, but I posted chapter one of this fic on Amino, and I got over 100 comments in three days, as well as 378 (and counting!) hearts!** _ **ON ONLY CHAPTER ONE!**_ **So once again, I'm cutting you guys some slack, AGAIN! But note: comments really do mean a lot to me, so make sure you comment after this chapter!  
**

Chapter 8: The Power of Light

Kiba, Shinjurou and Akamaru were about halfway down the stairs when Shinjurou suddenly paused. "I just thought of something," he said. "What?" Kiba asked. "We have to blend in. We'll stand out the way we are now, and we won't be able to help Sumire-san if we get captured too!" "Good point, so what do you suggest we do?" Kiba asked again. "You can do _henge no jutsu_ , right?" Shinjurou asked. Kiba scoffed. "Of course I can. Do I look like an Academy student to you?" "I'm sorry!" Shinjurou paled.

Kiba sighed. Shinjurou's inferiority complex got really annoying. "Never mind that. What's your plan?" "W-well, I figured we could both transform into bandits, but then we'd have no idea where we were going. Then I thought, one of us can be a bandit while the other would be a captured girl. Then we can ask the other bandits where they go. We find Sumi and the other girls, take them to safety and report this location to my older brother so he can send reinforcements." "Why would we need reinforcements? We can take them ourselves!" Kiba said. "We're not sure how many they really are, so we can't take chances."  
"Fine," Kiba sighed. "So which one of us is gonna be the girl?" He was met with silence, and Shinjurou's face turned bright red. "Oh, uh, um..." he stammered. They obviously both didn't want to play a female. Kiba crossed his arms and stared the younger boy down. "...I guess I'll do it...cos I'm younger...and shorter," Shinjurou mumbled, looking down. Kiba grinned triumphantly. "Don't be so hard on yourself, man. It was to be expected. After all, you're up against me!"

"Oh yeah, one more thing," Kiba said. "What about Akamaru?" Shinjurou looked down at their third companion. "Cripes. I completely forgot about him!" he said guiltily. "How rude!" Kiba chastised. "Well, can he do the transformation jutsu too? I mean, I know he's a ninja dog, but I don't know his abilities..." Shinjurou trailed off. "Well, there's _jūjin bunshin_ , but we've never tried transforming into anyone but me," Kiba said. "What do you think, Akamaru?" In reply, Akamaru barked. "You want me to the the hand seals for _jūjin bunshin_?" Kiba asked, and Akamaru barked enthusiastically. "Okay..." Kiba said unsurely. "Man-Beast Transformation!" Kiba said, swiftly forming the hand seals for one of his signature jutsu. Akamaru was suddenly surrounded by a puff of smoke...smoke from a bunshin transformation! When the smoke cleared, gone was Akamaru and in his place was a young girl.

Kiba's eyes widened. "When'd you learn to do that?" he asked, awed. The girl barked happily (which is kinda creepy). "You were secretly practicing with Hana whenever I slept in? You sneaky partner!" Kiba grinned, proud. "Uncanny," Shinjurou muttered, studying Akamaru's new features closely. He/she had white hair, the same color of Akamaru's fur, and slightly visible fangs, like Kiba had. The bandits would be fooled!  
"I guess that means we can both be bandits now," Kiba grinned. "Yeah. Now that I think about it, it would be weird for only one bandit to go on a raid," Shinjurou reasoned. "Yoshi! Let's do this!" Kiba said determinedly. "Henge no jutsu!" the two chorused quietly (remember, they're inside the hideout), and they were replaced by two, slightly lost, bandits.

* * *

"Fujimaru?" Sumi stuttered, surprised. "That isn't my real name, just as Emiko isn't yours, correct?" said the insanely gorgeous man sitting on a throne before Sumi. "You _are_ smarter than the rest of these bandits!" Sumi exclaimed. "Who are you really? What do you want?"

"It's just as you said," Fujimaru/Seiji-sama/The Boss shrugged. "I'm a 'lonely sucker with some brains who figured out that I could get a bunch of idiots to follow me.'" "Don't mess around," Sumi said carefully. She still didn't know who she was up against. "What about Boke? What'd your relationship?" she asked. "Oh, him? He's my right-hand man. But that's not important right now," he said, waving away the thought.

"Okay, then what is important right now?" Sumi asked. "You, of course." He leaned forward and rested his chin in his hands. "I knew from the beginning that you planned to be captured by us. It was quite obvious, actually. Those two shinobi that tried to take you, they're your comrades, are they not?" he asked. Sumi tsked. "You knew that, and yet you still took me in," she said. "Of course. It gets boring here. I was hoping you could provide me with a bit of excitement. You're playing your part rather well, I might add." He grinned.

 _Ugh_ , Sumi thought. He had a twisted way of thinking, and his dark eyes felt as if they were looking right through her.

"Why would The Boss go out on a raid with his subordinates, anyway?" she asked. "Like I said, I was bored. You should try sitting here 24/7. You wouldn't last 3 days." He was obviously being playful, and Sumi wasn't sure how to react. "What should I address you as, anyway? All your names are obviously fake," she said. "I'll tell you my real name if you tell me yours," he grinned.

Sumi sighed. "Who says Emiko isn't my real name?" she asked. "And who says Fujimaru isn't mine?" he asked. Jeez, even his eyes were smiling. Well, it wouldn't hurt... "My name's Sumi," she blurted. "A name as exquisite as the one who answers it," he said immediately, as if on cue. No wonder the girls in back in the room were smitten by him. He was good at acting; his voice was sincere and his eyes were deceiving. Sumi would've fallen for it immediately if she didn't know he was a thief boss. "Cut the crap. I've told you mine, now tell me your name," she snapped.

"Oh so cold," he said, clutching his chest. "Your cold arrows of love pierce my heart ever so painfully!" "Love? Please," Sumi scoffed. "Come closer," he commanded. "Why?" "You want to hear my name, do you not?" Rolling her eyes, Sumi walked forward until she was right in front of him, but he pulled her even closer. Taking her hand, he kissed it and whispered, "My name is Seiji."

Sumi snatched her hand away, willing her pounding heart to stop. "I knew it! Why did I think you wouldn't deceive me?" she said angrily. "Oh, but I do not. My name truly is Seiji," he said. "Your fancy talking is annoying me," Sumi said, swallowing hard. Seiji noticed this gesture and smirked. "It isn't, is it?" he asked. "It makes you happy that someone would bother himself with you, doesn't it?" Ooh, nail on the head. "You're wrong!" Sumi defended herself. "I don't need anyone!"

"So _you're_ the lonely one. I feel it," Seiji hummed. "Plus, your face is all red." "It's not for the reason you think!" Sumi said. "I'm not falling for your lame tricks. My friends will soon be here, and you'll regret ever dealing with me. Plus, your little act isn't flattering me at all. Instead, it annoys me!"

"Your words sound strained," Seiji said simply. Sumi was about to make a snappy remark about how he should stop trying to play psychologist when he waved his hand lightly. "I don't plan to pry into your past. You wouldn't tell me anyway." Sumi exhaled and studied Seiji. His face showed no emotion but mischief, and he didn't show any telltale physical signs of lying. He was _good_.

Sumi shifted from foot to foot, unsure of what to do next. Where the heck were those three when she needed them? "Would you like to tour with me?" Seiji asked abruptly. Sumi blinked. "Excuse me, what?" "You seem to be really curious about my job. I figured you wouldn't mind finding out." It took her mind several seconds to register what he'd just said. He was willing to spill his secrets?! She almost blurted out "Heck yeah!" in anticipation. "I would!" she beamed at him.

"Ah, at last she smiles, and quite dazzling it is, her smile," Seiji grinned, and Sumi felt her face go hot, not because she was flattered, but because she'd let her guard down enough to truly smile in front of the enemy. She knew that with the slightest slip-up, Seiji would pounce. Seiji gracefully stood from his throne, which looked more expensive than it could possibly be (or was it...?) and descended down the raised platform to Sumi.

"How regal. And you use fancy words too," Sumi noted. "Oh really? I wouldn't know. I grew up speaking like this," Seiji revealed. A clue? Sumi wasn't sure. But she took note of it, just in case. "Ah yes, lest I forget, there is one condition you must meet for this tour to go on," he said. She should've known there'd be a catch! "...You have to keep a smile on your face," Seiji finished. Oh, that was easy enough. Sumi took a deep breath and managed a small, reserved smile, one she'd practiced in front of her mirror.

Seiji responded with a smile of his own. "Not as blinding as the first one, but it'll do," he said. "Oh, for this 'tour', could you tone it down on the fancy-dancy language a bit? Like when you were pretending to be Fujimaru?" Sumi asked. "Sure," Seiji nodded. He moved quickly to the door of his 'throne-room'. Two bandits were stationed outside and greeted him with a loose "Hey, Boss!", leering at Sumi as she passed. "You'll have to ignore my men, they're a bit rough," Seiji said, still moving forward. He was speaking more casually now, Sumi noticed. She swallowed and silently begged for Kiba and Shinjurou to appear.

* * *

Shinjurou and Kiba had no idea what their female companion was going through. They made their way down the dimly lit earthen corridors, hoping to bump into one of the bandits soon. They did, as a group of three men, all dressed in black with their face masks down, turned the corner. "Huh? I thought we'd already captured one today!" one of them said, regarding Akamaru-as-a-human-girl (let's call her Aka-chan for now).

So they only made one capture a day, Shinjurou noted. Kiba laughed nervously. "This one was with the other. We can't have witnesses roaming around," he lied. "So, uh, we're kinda lost. Do you think you could show us where she goes?" Shinjurou added. The three bandits regarded them suspiciously. "Are you newbies?" one of them finally asked. Kiba and Shinjurou let out forced laughter, trying not to sound relieved. These guys were practically making their cover story _for_ them! "How did you know?" Shinjurou squeaked.

The bandit who'd spoken earlier sighed. "Hey Mabu, take these kids to the ladies' quarters, would ya?" "Yes sir," named Mabu said and turned, not even waiting to make sure they were following. After a series of confusing twists and turns, Mabu stopped in front of a door. "Drop the girl off here. Do you need me to take you to your rooms too?" "No, we can find our way from here," Shinjurou assured him. They waited until they could no longer hear his footsteps.

"Ladies' quarters? Rooms? They sure have fancy titles for holding cells," Kiba snorted. "Right?" Shinjurou agreed. "Now to get Sumi and bust out of here..." He turned the knob and entered the "quarters", and Kiba followed. They immediately shielded their eyes. "It's so bright..." Kiba murmured. 7 pairs of eyes looked up at them. "Welcome," a golden haired woman greeted them. "Welcome?" Shinjurou wrinkled his nose. What kind of prisoners said _welcome_? "Maybe the bandits forced them to be polite?" Kiba suggested, equally confused.

"Well in that case..." the three ninja released their transformation jutsu, but the dreamy look on the woman's face did not change. "Ah, shinobi. And a dog! What a pleasant surprise," she said. "You mean cause we're gonna rescue you? Well, heck yeah, it's _pleasant_ ," Kiba grinned. "Sumire-san?" Shinjurou called, scanning the faces of the females surrounding him. "She's not here," he murmured. Kiba's smile immediately twisted into a look of concern. "What?"

"Was there any other person here before?" Shinjurou asked the strangely quiet girls. "You mean Emiko?" a teen with bright blue hair asked. "She has such dazzling violet eyes..." an older brunette sighed. "That's her! Where is she?" Kiba demanded. "Oh, she left. Said something about coming back for us," the redhead said. "That idiot..." Kiba moaned.

"Wait, Kiba-san," Shinjurou said suddenly. "What?" "Don't you think this is weird?" the younger boy asked. "What is?" Kiba asked, already annoyed. "These girls are _happy_."

It took a full 5 seconds for the weight of Shinjurou's words to hit Kiba. "The door is open and there are no guards anywhere near this place, but they stay put, happily." "Maybe the door only opens from the outside," Kiba began, turning to look at it. It was closed. "We must've unconsciously shut it behind us as we came in..." Shinjurou said. Kiba reached for the door. It opened.

"Why aren't you guys trying to escape?" Shinjurou asked politely. The blonde woman wrinkled her nose. "We are not _guys_ ," she said in disgust. "Why would we _want_ to escape? Seiji-sama is here!" one of the younger girls said. "Seiji-sama?" Kiba repeated, confused. _That name sounds familiar_ , Shinjurou thought.

Akamaru suddenly barked. "There's something else that's weird," Kiba translated. "It's really bright in here, even though it's underground." "Kai!" Shinjurou said, making the genjutsu-release hand sign in front of one of the girls. She simply blinked back, a content smile on her face. "Either it isn't genjutsu or it's a really powerful one," Shinjurou muttered. "So the room isn't locked or guarded because the thieves are sure that the girls won't try to escape..." Kiba said. "...But why don't the girls want to escape?" Shinjurou continued. "They seem to be in some sort of trance. The room is abnormally bright," Kiba listed. The two furrowed their brows. Nothing.

* * *

"So how did you like the grub room?" Seiji asked Sumi. "Not very much," Sumi said, trying to push away the memory of the crowded bandit dining area. "I'm sure the great and powerful boss doesn't eat _there_ ," Sumi guessed. "Of course not!" Seiji scoffed.

He showed her around the general areas: the sleeping quarters, the kitchen, the training room, etc. "So what exactly are you planning with this?" he asked offhandedly. "Squeeze as much information out of you as possible," Sumi answered without thinking, then slapped a hand over her mouth. He'd asked it so casually, she didn't even realize what had happened. Seiji laughed. "I figured," he chuckled. "But how exactly are you planning on getting out from here? Oh wait, you have shinobi friends coming after you, don't you? Unfortunately, they won't be able to get in."  
" _Unfortunately_ , my friends are master trackers! I wouldn't be surprised if they were beating up your men right now!" Sumi declared. "Can't track without a scent, now can they?" Seiji smirked. Sumi froze. What did he mean _without a scent_? Seiji had walked forward and she rushed to keep up with him. "Alright fine, I give up!" Sumi sighed, tired. Seiji smirked. "I have a question for you," he said.

"Sure. What is it?" Sumi relented. "What are you?" came an unexpected question. "What do you mean? I'm human." "Then why didn't the light affect you?"

"Well, we can at least solve _one_ of the mysteries!" Shinjurou said finally. "You figured something out?" Kiba asked. "Not really," Shinjurou sighed. "But we can at least figure out where this light is coming from. I can feel it emitting chakra all over the place." "So what do you propose we do?" Kiba asked. "We can start by getting rid of that fake ceiling," Shinjurou said. "But I'm not really good at mass destruction jutsu..." A wolfish grin spread on Kiba's face. "Leave that to me. Ikuzo, Akamaru! Ga Tsuuga!"

The boy and his dog turned into rapidly spinning mini-tornadoes and assaulted what Shinjurou called a "fake ceiling". To their surprise, they came in contact with...nothing! They landed and surveyed their work. "I was right!" Shinjurou said. "Oh dear!" the girls commented, though there was not a trace of fear on their faces. The ceiling was not a ceiling at all. It was just a paper-thin illusion, and Kiba and Akamaru broke it. Now they were staring at a clear blue sky. "It's a hole. The sun shines directly into this room," Kiba murmured, awed. "So that's why it's so bright..." Shinjurou observed, equally amazed.

The two shinobi leaped up, and seeing land around the large hole, landed on said land. **(Haha)**. The area was completely surrounded with closely-packed glade trees. The tops of the trees were full and bushing. Because of this, only a small amount of light shone through the single circular space formed by the tops of the trees. "This can't be natural," Kiba alleged. "That opening up there is surprisingly perfect. The trees provide just enough space so that just enough light would illuminate the girls' room," Shinjurou said. "Suspicious, isn't it?" Kiba said plainly.

Shinjurou formed a couple of hand seals then did his arms as if pulling an arrow on a bow. "Yanerau no jutsu," he said, and released the fingers on the hand that was pulling the "bow." Kiba almost missed the ripple in the air where Shinjurou's invisible arrow ripped through. The arrow hit the air, and it shattered.

"The air just...broke?" Kiba was stunned. "Not the air. A genjutsu barrier," Shinjurou explained. "It's like a filter that turns the air and sunlight into poison, brainwashing anyone under it." "Then how come it didn't affect us?" Kiba asked. "I think it's safe to say that it was the work of my Boushi poison. That's probably why Sumire-san wasn't affected either," Shinjurou said. "You are a handy person to have around. I never would've figured that out on my own! How did you know?" Kiba commended. "I didn't. It was a lucky guess," Shinjurou blushed. Kiba held back the urge to roll his eyes. His split personality was very annoying.

The two jumped down into the room where the girls waited patiently. "Welcome back!" they beamed. "Why are they not back to normal?" Shinjurou panicked. "Relax. It probably takes a while. I mean, they've been absorbing that poison-thingamajig for who knows how long?"Kiba said. "Wait a second, wouldn't it stop working at night?" he suddenly exclaimed. "I didn't think of that," Shinjurou said.

"Hey, what time do you guys go to sleep?" Kiba asked the girls. "Well, I don't really know since we never leave this room, but the thugs come in to give us our sleeping medicine at the same time every day. Or at least, I _think_ it's the same time..."

"How horrible!" Kiba growled. "They put them to sleep before the sun sets..." Shinjurou muttered. "These aren't ordinary bandits." "Ya think?!" Kiba scoffed.

* * *

"I knew there was something weird with that light!" Sumi blurted. "What is it?" she demanded. Seiji studied her for a second, then shrugged. "Since it isn't affecting you anyway, I guess I'll tell you," he sighed. "Don't tell me that you'll tell me. _Tell me_!" Seiji rolled his dark eyes. "Have you heard of the _Hinome Intoxicant_?" he asked. "No. What is it?" "It's a special technique that transforms light into a weapon. Whoever bathes in this light will have their entire mind altered, according to the user's wishes." "Is that what that light is?" Sumi asked. "I don't know. Is it?" Seiji shrugged, turning his head away and continuing forward.

Sumi sped up and soon fell in step with him. It was obviously the intoxicant he'd mentioned. But she'd never even heard of it, meaning it was a top secret technique, maybe even forbidden! Was it even a jutsu at all? And if it was, how were these bandits able to use it? Who was Seiji, really? Her head started to hurt and she decided to stop thinking about it. _Oh please let Kiba get here soon!_ She mentally begged.

* * *

"You know, we don't even know what these girls were made to believe in the first place. Was it just to be polite and calm?" Kiba stated. "I doubt it," Shinjurou replied. He looked over at one of the girls, the one with golden locks. "Hey, what's the most important thing to you right now?" he asked. "Seiji-sama...I think?" she answered dreamily. "Seems like the poison's effects are wearing off," Kiba noted.

"Seiji-sama, huh?" Shinjurou thought. He'd heard that name somewhere before. Now he was sure of it! "Think, Shin, think!" he ordered himself. _Rogues, captured females, sunlight poison, Seiji...the link: he was missing the link that connected all the clues._

"That's it!" he said suddenly."What is?" Kiba asked. "The Seiji they're talking about must be Seiji Dokuyaku! The one who invented that jutsu!"

* * *

 **I went well over 3,500 freaking words! It's after 12am right now! I need a break...**

 **Jujin Bunshin-man-beast transformation**

 **Seiji's last name means "poison".**

 **Anyway, I've been thinking of drawing Sumi. I've basically got her outfit all picked out and I know she has purple eyes and chestnut-brown hair (with purple highlights—natural, of course), but I have conflicting ideas on her other features. What do you guys think? I'm open to suggestions!**

 **Check out some options at my journal. Just copy and paste this link into the search box cause I can't add an actual link on here: ht pst : / / www . quote v 29522691/journal/3620886 Don't forget to get rid of the extra spaces! Also, organize htpst to match the letters you usually see at the beginning of a URL! Sorry to give you so much work, but this damned editor won't let me post anything that looks like it could be a link to another site. Talk about jealousy!** **  
**


	9. Chapter 9: The Plan

**Hey guuys! Sorry, I've been slacking off so bad... XD**

Chapter 9: The Plan

"Oh, this is bad, this is bad," Shinjurou fretted. "You just noticed?" Kiba scoffed. "It just got worse! We have to find Sumire-san and get out of here ASAP!" Shin continued, oblivious to Kiba. Kiba grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him hard. "Calm down! Why is it worse? Who's Seiji Whatchamacallim?" he yelled.

Shinjurou inhaled then exhaled. "He's from Yumegakure, but he left the village long ago. He's very skilled at making medicine. In fact, I learned a lot from him. But, he suddenly grew bored of helping people and began to research poison. He went as far as analyzing the poisons used by the great Akasuna no Sasori and medical scrolls left by two of the legendary Sannin - Tsunade and Orochimaru. As he got deeper in, he became interested in genjutsu and brainwashing. My older brother, who was his closest friend, grew wary of him and reported his actions to authorities. Seiji was ordered to stop all his research."

Kiba swallowed. "I'm guessing it didn't stop there," he said. Shinjurou shook his head solemnly. "It didn't. Seiji was in the process of creating something called the Hinome Intoxicant, the jutsu I was referring to earlier when I exclaimed 'the one who invented _that_ jutsu' earlier. I'm not exactly sure what the Hinome Intoxicant is, but nii-san said it was dangerous. As revenge, Seiji killed the current village leader and ran away. My brother was already in line, so he took over sooner than expected. But he told me that Seiji's wrath was far from over."

Shinjurou stopped talking to catch his breath. "You think this is part of his revenge?" Kiba asked. Shinjurou shook his head. "I don't know, but one thing is for sure: my old Sensei is dangerous."

Kiba grinned. "Dangerous? Well that's more like it. I can go completely wild!" Akamaru barked in excited agreement. Shinjurou shuddered a bit. These guys were actually excited to fight dangerous people? He looked at the girls. "First, we need to get them out. I'm sure the reinforcements are almost here. They'll be super confused when they get to the entrance though."

"We're busting out of here!" Kiba cheered, pumping his first. Shinjurou sighed, then turned to the females. "Which one of you is the oldest?" he asked. A golden haired woman stepped forward, a bit shakily. The poison's effects were making then drowsy. "I am Kourai," she said with a warm smile. "Okay, I'll need you to stand at the very front, behind the young man with the dog. Can you do that?"

Kiba frowned. Shinjurou had just called him a _young man_. He could almost hear Ino cracking up at that one. "At the front of what?" Kourai asked. "The line we're making," Shin explained. "Kiba will be at the front and I'll guard the rear, with the youngest one in the middle and the oldest ones near the ends." "Why would we need a line?" a brunette woman asked. "So we'll be able to keep track of all of you," Shiunjurou answered, getting tired of the questions.

"Keep track of us? Why? Are we leaving?" the youngest girl there asked, her eyes wide. "Yes. We're taking you home. Don't you want to go home?" Shin asked gently. The girl closed her eyes and shook her head. "No! I don't want to leave without Seiji-sama!" "Me neither!" a blue-nette said. "Me neither!" the others chorused. Kiba face-palmed and Akamaru whined. This wasn't going to be easy.

* * *

"Tell me!" Sumi demanded, still struggling to keep up with Seiji. "Whatever are you talking about?" he asked innocently. "Those girls, that light, was it the Hinome Intoxicant?" she asked. Seiji didn't answer and instead walked faster. He turned into a room and Sumi followed him, realizing that they were back in his throne room. The halls were so confusing!  
"What are you planning?" she asked. At first, Seiji didn't react. Suddenly, he grabbed her hand and pinned her against the wall, pushing his knee in between her legs to keep her from moving. She struggled against his grip but he was strong, stronger than she'd expected.

"You're a pretty girl. Girls like you should do just that- look pretty." "That's sick!" Sumi yelled. "Is that why you captured all those girls? Are they your test bunnies for your plan to make all girls brainless dummies?" Seiji laughed. "How creative! That's actually a pretty good idea. But no. Philosophies differ from person to person. I wouldn't just force my beliefs on the whole world."

"Then what? What are you planning?"

Seiji sighed. "I guess I'll just tell you," he said.

Sumi tensed. Was he really going to reveal everything? Then again, he'd shown her around his 'castle'. Maybe he was serious. "The 'plan' you're referring to is barely even in phase one yet. I didn't think anyone would be breaking in until at least phase two," Seiji said, resting his head on Sumi's shoulder.  
"What's phase one? Elaborate," Sumi demanded, loathing this strange person who was using her as a pillow. "Patience. I was getting there. You see, I want revenge on a certain person. You may know him: Shintarou Tenrō?" "You mean Shinjurou?" Sumi asked. "No, Shinjurou was my kawaii little student. Shintarou is his older brother, the current chief of Yumegakure.

"What do you want with him? What did he do to you?" Sumi asked in a panic. It may not be her business, but they couldn't let harm come to Shinjurou's older brother! The poor guy would be crushed! Seiji tightened his grip on Sumi's wrist and she cried out in pain. She hadn't been expecting it, if not, she could've suppressed her cry. "I said to be patient. At least let me finish talking before you open those lips of yours, or I'll do something to them I guarantee you'll hate." Sumi flinched. He was a devil.

"As I said before, I want to get my revenge on him. As for what he did to me, oh, he only betrayed me, his friend, ran his stupid little mouth and got my life's work shut down!" Seiji was radiating anger. "This time, poisoning won't work. Since what happened with the last chief, I'm sure they have better security. To get rid of him, I'll have to invade. That comes to phase one of my plan – gathering men."

"You plan to declare war on Yumegakure?" Sumi's eyes widened. "Of course not. I may be a lot of things, but stupid isn't one of them. Plus, I don't seek power. I just want to continue my research." Sumi narrowed her eyes. "So you just want to kill Chief Tenrō, then get the heck out of there?" she asked. Seiji lifted his head and flashes her a blinding grin. "That's the plan."

Sumi scowled. "Earlier, you mentioned phase one being barely complete. What do you mean by that? You already have plenty men," she observed. "Plenty, but not enough. Shintarou has a secret stash of soldiers he kept aside specifically for me. He doesn't know I know, I'm sure," Seiji grinned, as if thinking 'I'm so sneaky'.

"Once phase one is complete, I begin phase two, which is simply training my men. Phase three is the attack. Then ill disband my men and return my focus to my research." "So what about your men? What's in it for them?" Sumi questioned. "Well, they'll be able to become disciplined soldiers, that's for one. Also, whatever happens to Yumegakure after I have completed my revenge is completely up to them. They might be able to take it over, kidnap the women or leave it alone entirely. It's not my problem." "You monster!" Sumi growled. "Now now, let's not get abusive," Seiji tsked.

"So what about the girls? The ones your men kidnapped. What's the use for them?" Sumi asked quietly. "Oh them? They're there to help me complete the Hinome Intoxicant. I'm trying to see if I can make it permanent, you see. Women are stronger mentally than men. If it works on them, I'm successful."

"And? What happens to them once you're successful."

"Who knows? Maybe I'll just discard of them?"

Sumi shook with anger. "How dare you! Women aren't just tools to be used for men's convenience! We're people!" she shouted. Seiji hadn't expected her to react so strongly so she took advantage of his momentary shock to slip from his grip and deliver a blow to his stomach.

Seiji staggered backwards and Sumi followed uo with a light hook but Seiji blocked her easily. He flashed his expensive smirk. "Not so fast, Sumi-chan. I was a jounin, ya know."

* * *

The boys finally managed to convince the girls that Seiji-sama would come visit them soon and lined them up. Kiba and Akamaru took the lead, followed by Kourai, Tama (18 yrs), Nagi (16), Tomoyo (14), Kirei (15), Midori (23), Haeru (28) and Shinjurou. "Okay, ready!" Shinjurou called from the back of the line. "Ikuzo!" Kiba cheered, then opened the door.

The party made their way quietly down the dimly lit corridors. Kiba and Akamaru followed the scent they'd left behind beforehand so as not to get lost. It was a while before they bumped into someone else.

"Oi, where are you talking them-" the bandit couldn't finish because Kiba punched him in the stomach and knocked him out. The girls gasped. "I'm sorry, but we can't risk being found out now," Shinjurou apologized as he past the fallen bandit. Kiba rolled his eyes.

They past a few more random thugs like that. Kiba took care of them and Shinjurou provided assistance when needed, apologizing as he went along. Kirei was the first to be completely free of the sun-jutsu's effects and promptly fainted so Akamaru had to carry her. When Midori fainted to, they decided to hurry it up, knowing that there was no way they could carry seven women.

They finally reached the stairs they'd come in through only to realize that they had no idea how to open it. "Crap," Kiba muttered. "Oh no, what do we do, what do we do?" Shinjurou fretted. Kiba, having had it, smacked him upside the head. "Calm down, dammit! You're a guy, aren't you? Act like one!"

Tears filled Shinjurou's eyes. "Moushiwake arimasen!" he wailed. Kiba face-palmed. "Just...wait here," he sighed. "Akamaru! Come on boy!"

Minutes later, two Kibas returned, dragging a bandit hostage by the ear. One of the Kibas barked- he was actually Akamaru. "This guy's gonna tell us how to get out of here, won't you?" the real Kiba said threateningly. The guy gulped. "I know nothing, I swear!" he pleaded. Akamaru barked. Kiba whipped out a kunai and held it to the man's neck. "Akamaru thinks you're lying. He's a living lie-detector you know!"

The man gulped again. "I'm not sure how to though! Our leader, Seiji-sama, he's always the one to open the entrance!" he blurted. Kiba held the kunai closer to the man's neck. "You're not telling us everything you know," he said. "No seriously! Our leader's the only one that's an ex-nin! He does three hand signs to get it to open! But I don't know them! I swear!" Kiba sighed. "That's all he knows. Just great. So we're gonna have to try every hand seal combination until we get it?"

"Well, the most common hand seal-combination for opening entrances is 'monkey bear rat'. Might as well start with that," Shinjurou suggested. "Fine," Kiba sighed. The two of them stood side by side. Monkey. Bear. Rat. To their surprise, the entrance rolled open and early afternoon light filled the hide out. "It worked," Shinjurou said incredulously. "I wouldn't have expected Seiji to use such a simple technique. Has he lost his touch or is it really a different person...?" Kiba grinned. "Who cares? Gotta hand it to ya, kid!"

The light had attracted some of the bandits, but Kiba, Akamaru and Shinjurou promptly took them out, while the girls stared on in horror. Shinjurou borrowed some of the girls' ribbons to tie up the bandits and lugged them up the wide stairs. The girls and Kiba followed.

Akamaru sniffed the air and barked at Kiba. "No one's been here after us. Your reinforcements haven't arrived yet," Kiba translated. He turned to the girls. "When Yumegakure nin arrive, can you tell them where we are?" he asked. Haeru, who had come back to her senses but didn't faint nodded grimly. "Thank you," she said bowing. Shinjurou blushed but Kiba grinned. "Just doing our job and being awesome!" He turned to Shinjurou. "Come on, let's go rescue Sumi and kick Seiji Whatchamacallim's butt!" he grinned. Shinjurou nodded. "Kage bunshin no jutsu!" he said. He left his clone with the girls in case their captives came to, and followed Kiba back into their darkness to save their female companion.

 **Sorry, I wanted to finish this arc in this chapter, but I'm tired of typing. I'll end it in the next chapter (coming soon) and we'll get to see our favourite characters in the chapter after that! XD**

 **Okay, also, don't forget to comment! Love you guys!**


	10. Chapter 10: Defeat

**Merry (late) Christmas everyone! I was slacking off again. While slacking off, I thought I'd watch Diabolik Lovers. Vampires have never been my thing, but I thought that, since everyone was talking about it, it'd be better than Vampire Knight. I was sorely mistaken...**

Chapter 10: Defeat

Sumi was having a hard time against Seiji. He was amazingly good at taijutsu. He easily blocked every kick and punch she launched at him. Even when she feinted, he saw right through it. "You can't stay on defence forever," she said, already out of breath.

Seiji smirked. "You're right," he said. Then he attacked. Sumi dodged easily, flipping twice and landing on her feet in defence position. "You're rather nimble. Are you a shinobi?" Seiji grinned. Sumi didn't answer and charged forward.

"Oh? Your movements have gotten faster," Seiji said calmly as he dodged all her attacks. He sounded so laid back, which only made Sumi angrier. She left back a few steps and formed a few hand seals. "Suiton: Suihachi!" she said, and a stream of water shot out from her outstretched palm. Seiji was caught by surprise and the water jet slammed him against the wall. Sumi shut off her jutsu, breathing hard. "So you are a shinobi," he muttered, slowly rising to his feet. "Wrong," Sumi said, rushing forward to punch Seiji in his face. Seiji was faster though, and caught her by the wrist.

"Now now, little girl. No need to be in a rush to meet your doom." Seiji tightened the grip on her wrist and Sumi cried out, feeling tears rise to her eyes. She just couldn't beat this guy. Not now, not like this.

"Ga Tsuuga!"

Seiji leapt back as two swirling tornadoes rushed towards him, releasing Sumi. Shinjurou caught Sumi before she fell to the floor. The whirlwinds turned back into Kiba and Akamaru. Sumi was awed-she'd never seen a jutsu like that before. "Is this Seiji Whatchamacallim?" Kiba asked Shinjurou. Shin nodded. "That's definitely my old sensei."

"Ah, Shin-kun, you've grown so much!" Seiji cooed. "So how about it? Wanna catch up with your old sensei?" Shinjurou took a step back. Sumi could feel him tense. He was obviously intimidated by Seiji. "No, Sensei. There's no escape for you now. Please just quietly turn yourself in." Seiji laughed out loud. "Yes, that would be the easy way out, wouldn't it?"

"Hey, Shinjurou, who am I up against?" Kiba asked. "He uses mainly water and lightening element jutsu," Shin said. "He's also fairly good at taijutsu, but that's his weakest point. He became interested in genjutsu around the time he left the village, so he should be pretty good at that, too." Seiji chuckled. "You always knew so much about me, Shin-kun," he said.

"You shouldn't be smiling, man. I'm about to take you down." Kiba looked at the water pooling on the ground. "And you even attacked Sumi. That's more of a reason to beat you all the way down to hell." "Oh, that water jutsu wasn't mine," Seiji began. "The hell it wasn't!" Kiba growled. Realization flashed across Seiji's face and he caught Sumi's eye. Then winked. Sumi exhaled. She hoped it meant that her secret was safe with him. Either that, or he didn't plan on letting Kiba and Shin out alive.

"Hey! Pay attention when someone's challenging you!" a pissed off Kiba was saying. "Right, right. So then, I'll go first." Seiji had barely finished saying that when he appeared in front of Kiba. "Hayai!" Kiba gasped, blocking the attack. Seiji appeared again behind him and Kiba dodged just in time. Then he smirked. "I guess I can't beat you just like this." Kiba matched Seiji's speed. Neither Sumi nor Shinjurou could follow their movements anymore.

Shinjurou was right though-taijutsu was Seiji's weakness. Unable to keep throwing punches, the handsome man began forming hand seals. "I won't let you! Ga Tsuuga!" Kiba attacked with his signature combo move. Seiji's hand seals were interrupted, but he easily dodged Kiba's attack. The battle dragged on because Seiji just kept dodging. "What about the reinforcements?" Sumi asked Shinjurou. "They aren't here yet. If they were, my clone would lead them here." Sumi clenched her fist, wishing she could help.

Kiba was just about ready to end this. He had kept Seiji from using any of his ninjutsu. Seiji also apparently didn't have any of his poison-weapons with him, so that was good for Kiba. There was also no sign of Seiji being able to perform ocular genjutsu, so that was also a plus. Now if only he'd stay still so that he could land a direct attack.

Seiji was equally aggravated. Those two had come out of nowhere. He was nowhere near ready for an ambush. He didn't have so much as a kunai with him. He had overestimated his men. Now if only this kid would stay put so that he could prepare a deadly lightening move.

"Inuzuka-Ryū: Jinjū Konbi Henge: Sōtōrō!" Kiba and Akamaru, now a double-headed wolf, lunged at Seiji. Both heads bit down on his arms and Seiji was pushed against a wall, held in place. "Now's my chance to help!" Shinjurou thought. Letting go of Sumi, he pulled an invisible arrow. "Yanerau no jutsu," he said. However, Seiji had maneuvered around the double-headed wolf and the arrow did little more than graze his shoulder. It did do some good though, as thick red blood rolled down Seiji's right arm. "Kuso!" Seiji cursed.

"Yare yare, boss," a male voice said, his voice dripping with venomous honey. "Boke," Seiji muttered. Sure enough, the second guy who had captured Sumi walked out of the darkness, blue eyes sparkling. Boke tsked at the bleeding Seiji. "You're in quite an ordeal. Would you like me to help?" "Kono yarou," Seiji growled. Kiba, now back to normal looked between the two men, frowning. "What's this? A falling out between comrades?"

Seiji scoffed. "Hardly." "What's going on?" Sumi asked, confused. "Aren't you friends?" Boke smiled. "I'd like to think so, but Boss has a different idea. You see, he didn't even want me in his little organization. He doesn't trust ex-nin ya know, despite being one himself." "If you didn't want him, why is he here?" Kiba asked. Seiji scowled. "I needed someone to govern my men when I couldn't, and he seemed sophisticated enough. I had no choice."

Kiba frowned. "I don't have time for this. If you're here to help him, I'll just have to take you down too." Seiji laughed dryly. "He isn't here to help. He's here to watch." Kiba, Shinjurou and Sumi were stunned. Didn't comrades help each other, whether they got along well or not? Akamaru growled. "You two disgust me," Kiba said. "I'm helping too," Shin said. Seiji could still fight, but with his right arm now paralyzed (Shin's arrow was coated with a mild paralysis poison), he couldn't last long.

Boke took a step forward. "This would be quite entertaining to watch. I would've loved to see if you could get the Boss to beg for mercy, but I can't let you kill him. He still hasn't completed his plan, and that would be even more entertaining." "What plan?" Shinjurou asked and Sumi gave them a quick rundown of the plan Seiji had revealed to her. Shin's eyes widened. "He planned to kill Nii-san?" He looked at Seiji, a terrified look on his face. "Sensei...why?" Seiji scoffed. "I'm not obliged to answer that." "For someone who's life depends on the people around him, you're too cocky, doncha think?" Kiba frowned.

Boke took another step forward. "You're right, boy. The Boss is too cocky and headstrong. Those values spell defeat." He took yet another step forward. "Why didn't I realize this before? Seiji would never be able to complete his plan, much less defeat these little brats here now." Sumi swallowed. "He's acting strange," she whispered. "That guy has mental problems. I always knew he could turn on me at any second," Seiji explained. "Why keep a guy like that around then?" Kiba demanded. "I told you, I had no choice. I gave him daily medications to keep his mental state in check."

"Only I never took them," Boke interrupted. "I figured that much," Seiji sighed. Sumi moved behind Shinjurou and Kiba and Akamaru stood close together, senses on high alert. Both these men were crazy.

Seiji exhaled. "Listen to me, Boke. You're very unstable right now. Why don't you head back to your room and sleep? I'll handle these kids on my own. I definitely will. If not, how will I ever complete my plan? You want to see my complete my plan, don't you?"

At first, it seemed like Boke was calming down. Then he grinned wide, his eyes taking a crazy glint. "Just kidding!" With one swift movement, he sent Seiji flying. His back hit the wall, shattering it like glass. He slumped to the floor. "Sensei!" Shinjurou yelled. Sumi gasped, covering her mouth. "What strength," Kiba said, glaring at Boke.

"Know...your place, kid. He's...insane," Seiji grunted, clutching his arm. As if on cue, Boke started laughing like a mad man and, pulling out a short sword, started swinging carelessly at Kiba. "That's right. The Boss, no, Seiji, can't complete his plan. I'll complete it for him. Yes. He's useless. Only I can complete the plan now." Kiba was kept on defence. Although his moves were sloppy, Boke left no openings. He laughed hysterically as he tried to butcher Kiba. "What a pain," Kiba muttered as he dodged to avoid getting cut.

Kiba backed into a wall and Boke, grinning madly, aimed for his neck. Sumi gasped as Kiba caught his wrist at the last moment. Boke frowned, trying to make at least a cut, but Kiba held him back with all his strength. Akamaru barked and attacked Boke from behind. Boke yelped in pain and Kiba used the opportunity to kick him hard in the stomach. Boke stumbled backwards. "Yanerau no jutsu," Shinjurou said, and released another arrow, this one pierced Boke right in the shoulder.

Thrown off guard once more, Kiba pummelled Boke with his Tsuuga. Boke flew backwards and Shinjurou appeared behind him, hitting him with the special Tenrō Style: Dream Lash. Boke fell to the ground, unconscious. Kiba grinned at Shinjurou and Akamaru. They did it.

They looked over at Seiji. Apparently, he had also passed out from blood loss. "Guess he was nothing but talk after all," Kiba sighed. Shinjurou shook his head. "No, we were just lucky. Seiji's poison's could knock you out in a heartbeat. If he had been armed, we wouldn't have stood a chance." Kiba clapped Shinjurou on the back. "Don't be such a wimp! Remember, you have the Almighty Inuzuka Kiba with you!" Kiba boasted lightly. Shinjurou grinned. Sumi let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh yeah, Sumire-san! Are you hurt?" Shinjurou panicked. "No. The girls. The Hinome Intoxicant...we have to save them," Sumi managed. "They're safe and sound," Kiba grinned. "For you to be worried about others when you're in that state...you're pretty awesome yourself!" Sumi smiled at him. _If only he knew_.

"So that sun jutsu was called the Hinome Intoxicant?" Shinjurou asked. Sumi nodded.

Just then, Yumegakure ninja came barging into the room. They looked at the men lying unconscious on the floor in awe. One with blonde hair approached them, introducing himself. "You kids took down Seiji Dokuyaku and Boke Maebara all by yourselves!" "We just got lucky-" Shinjurou began but Kiba interrupted. "Damn right we did!"" he bragged and Akamaru barked enthusiastically. The reinforcements took care of the rest, tying up Seiji and Boke and gathering up the rest of the men. They also took the girls back to Yumegakure to find their families. It turned out Boke was an escaped convict from the Land of Lightening. They had benn up against really dangerous people.

Kiba and Sumi were treated well by Chief Tenrō, who treated them to dinner and had them stay in rooms reserved only for VIPs. Sumi was embarrassed by it all, but Kiba enjoyed the attention.

The next morning, as they prepared to head back to Konoha, Shinjurou greeted them at the door. "Thanks again, Kiba-san, Sumire-san," he said. Akamaru whined and Shin laughed. "Oh, and you too, Akamaru-san." "No problem," Kiba grinned. Akamaru barked happily. Sumi smiled.

"I'm a bit sad to see you go. Without you two, I never would've been able to do anything," Shinjurou admitted. "Well, that _is_ true..." Kiba began. Sumi elbowed him roughly. "I wasn't done!" he protested. He cleared his throat. "As I was saying, Shin, it's true that you probably wouldn't have defeated those two without our help, but that doesn't mean you can't do anything. You're a smart kid, and your jutsus are awesome. Stop putting yourself down so much. You'll be amazed at what you can do."

Shinjurou looked up at Kiba, eyes wide and happy. "Arigatou, Kiba-taichou!" he said. "T-taichou?" "Yes! My other sensei turned out to be a criminal, but I'm sure that if I follow you, I won't go wrong." Kiba grinned. "You do that. Make me proud, kid," he said. "Mmm!" Shin nodded enthusiastically. "Good bye, Sumire-san!" he added. "You can call me Sumi," Sumi grinned.

On the road back to Konoha, Sumi elbowed Kiba. "Good work with Shin back there," she said. Kiba smirked. "Of course. With me, everything's awesome." Akamaru barked in agreement. Sumi smiled. After all that craziness, she was more than ready to head back to the quiet of her home. And Kiba would be there. That was the best part.

* * *

 ***All jutsu in this chapter, apart from the ones used by Kiba and Sumi, were made up by me***

 **Hayai-an exclamation meaning "(he's) fast!"**

 **Kuso-shit, dammit**

 **Yarayare-my my, geez, oh dear**

 **Konoyarou-you idiot**

 **Taichou-captain, respected senior**

 **Yeah, so the Yumegakure arc is finally over! You know, I planned this to be just one chapter, and never expected characters like Seiji and Boke to appear. I hope you enjoyed my spontaneous ideas!**

 **In the next chapter, you'll see your** **favorite** **characters! ^_^**

 **Also, check out my new one shot, A Kiba Christmas.**


	11. Chapter 11: Meeting the Others

**Hiiii! Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter 11: Meeting the Others

Sumi sighed at the pile of paperwork scattered across her desk. It was hard to find regular work in a ninja village like Konoha. She glanced out the window. She'd started at sunrise and the sun was now high in the sky. She hadn't even had breakfast yet. Guess she was having another instant ramen meal.

"S'uuuuupp, Sumiiiiii?" Kiba's voice rang from the front of Sumi's house. She rushed to go open the door for him only to find out that he had already let himself in. She planted her hands on her hips! "Kiba!" she scolded. He replied with a grin, and she rolled her eyes. Kiba had no shame. "You're about to eat instant ramen?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Sumi blushed. "How did you know?" she asked. "You already opened it didn't you? I know what it smells like before its cooked," Kiba explained. "Wow," Sumi said. She didn't even know pre-made instant ramen had a smell. The Inuzukas sure were amazing!

She turned back towards her kitchen and Kiba followed her in. He noticed the pile of papers on her work desk. "Whatcha doing?" he asked. "Job hunting," she answered with a sigh. " "Why? You could just work with me," Kiba said. Since Sumi had played such a large part in Kiba's Yumegakure mission, he split the pay with her. That was the money she'd been living on. "Sorry, but I'd rather had a job that _didn't_ involve risking my life," she said.

Then she noticed something was missing. "Where's Akamaru?" she asked. "Oh yeah, that's why I came here!" Kiba exclaimed. Sumi panicked. "What? Is he missing? Did he run away?" Kiba laughed. "Of course not! He's at Kakashi's place!" Sumi calmed down. "Rokudaime sama? What does that have to do with me?" she asked. "They asked me to come fetch you, and are holding Akamaru captive until I come back with you," Kiba explained.

Sumi raised an eyebrow. "They?"

"The Konoha 11! And Sai!" Kiba replied with a grin.

"Who are the Konoha-eleven-and-sai?" Sumi repeated. "My friends. Duh," Kiba grinned. "So Sai isn't one of your friends?" Sumi asked. Kiba cocked his head. "Well, I don't really talk to him much, but he counts, I guess. He wasn't there when Sasuke left, so he isn't an official member of the Konoha 11," he said. "I still don't get it, but never mind that. Why are you all meeting in the Hokage's house?" Sumi asked.

"Today's one of the few days we're all in the village and free at the same time. Kakashi-sensei is the only one who doesn't mind if all of us crash at his place at once. More like he doesn't complain, but whatever!" Sumi looked down. "I'm not sure I wanna meet your friends all at once..."

Kiba smirked and leaned forward so his face was right in front of his. "What? You shy?" he teased. Sumi turned red and staggered backwards, falling on her butt. Kiba laughed, and she glared, embarrassed. Kiba extended his arm and pulled her up with ease. _He's strong_ , she thought with surprise as she suddenly found herself back on her feet. Kiba flashed her one of his oh-so cocky grins. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll love you!"

* * *

"S'up people?" Kiba announced, walking into Kakashi's home, a nervous Sumi trailing close behind him. "You're late!" a pretty blonde girl hissed at him. "Yo!" a guy with his black hair pulled back into a spiky ponytail said to him. "Oh! Is that Sumi?" a pinkette said enthusiastically! Sumi squirmed as every eye in the room was focused on her. "Um, hi. I'm Sumire Murasaki," she said. She was suddenly surrounded by people. "Wow, she's cute," someone said. "I'm Ino!" the blonde from earlier grinned. "I am Rock Lee! The spirit of youth shines through your beautiful face!" another said. Sumi wasn't sure whether that was a compliment or not. "Er, thanks?" she asked.

"Just ignore him," another advised. Sumi lost count of everyone that introduced themselves to her. "W-welcome to Konoha...although I might be a bit late," the one Sumi recognized as Kiba's best friend said shyly. "Want some chips?" another asked. "I like the shuriken design on your shirt. Do you like weapons?" Sumi was overwhelmed. The one with pink hair seemed to get the hint.

"Get out of here, stupid boys! She doesn't want to talk to you!" she announced. "You're so loud," someone yawned—Shikamaru? "And mean too," Kiba said. The pinkette glared daggers at them and they cowered. Just then, a blond boy with blue eyes and kitsune markings on his cheek walked out from the kitchen, a pile of snacks in his arms, Akamaru circling his feet. "What's going on?" he asked. Akamaru spotted Sumi and bounded towards her, jumping on her and knocking her off her feet. Kiba laughed. The blond dropped the snacks on the table and helped Sumi up.

"You must be Sumi! I'm Uzumaki Naruto, ya know!" he grinned, extending his palm. Sumi scrambled to her feet and shook his hand. "Naruto? As in, _the_ Uzumaki Naruto? The savior of the 4th Shinobi War?!" she exclaimed. The boy blushed and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, but that was ages ago!" he said. Sumi was starstruck and was about to blurt out how big of a fan she was when the pinkette stepped in between them. "Don't hog her, Naruto!"

Sumi was surprised. She didn't think the "savior of the world" would be ordered around by a girl. She recalled Kiba mentioning NaruHina on the first day they'd met. Maybe the pink-haired girl was his girlfriend? That'd explain things. But the girl she'd seen through the window at the ramen shop had blue-black hair. Maybe the hero was just friendly and modest, despite his status?

Before Sumi could ask, the pinkette grabbed her hand. "Come on, let's go to that end of the room, where the idiots can't bother us," she said. Sumi shot a panicked look at Kiba but he just grinned and winked. "Have fun," he mouthed, and he and Naruto crashed on the couch with the other guys.

The other girls were already seated in a circle at the other side of the room, snacking from a single bag of chips. Sumi sat between the blonde and the Kiba's best friend. "Hey!" the brunette—Tenten?— said. Then she introduced herself. "I'm Sakura!" the pinkette said. "I'm Hinata," Kiba's best friend smiled. "I'm Ino. You're kind of quiet," the blonde said bluntly. "I'm not really used to being thrown into a group of people," Sumi said, a bit offended. "Don't mind Ino. She's a diva," Sakura said. "Mind your own business, Forehead!" Ino retorted. "What was that, Ino-pig?" Sakura challenged. "Calm down, you two!" Tenten snapped.  
Ino turned her attention to Sumi. "Sorry about the onslaught of people. We don't usually get new people in our group," she said. "Really?" Sumi asked. "Yeah. We've been stuck together since our Academy days. We're sick of each other!" Sakura stuck out her tongue. "Well, all of us except Tenten, Lee and Sai," she added. Sumi looked at Tenten in surprise. "I'm a year older than them," Tenten clarified. "So is Lee. He's the one dressed like a green fashion disaster." Sumii turned to look while the other girls giggled. "Sai is the cute one with black hair," Ino pointed. "He joined Sakura and Naruto's team when Sasuke went rogue," Ino added.

"There are only 11 people here," Sumi said suddenly. "Uh, yeah?" Sakura tilted her head, wondering why it mattered. "Kiba-kun said that we'd be meeting the Konoha 11 plus Sai. So there should be 12 people here, other than Akamaru and I," Sumi explained. The girls looked at each other, silently communicating. Sumi noticed a sadness in their eyes. "That's because Neji-nee-san died," Hinata admitted.

Sumi's eyes widened. "I had no idea. I'm sorry!" she apologized. "No p, girl. It was Kiba's fault for not explaining well," Sakura smiled sadly. "Forget that for now. He wouldn't like it if we mourned too much. Anyway, there are more interesting matters at hand. Kiba- _kun_ , huh? So you're friends with Dog-Boy, huh?" Ino leaned forward, an intrigued look on her face. Sumi wasn't sure what to say in reply and blushed slightly at what Ino was implying. "We're just friends. He showed me around," she said, struggling to keep her voice from shaking.

"And he still hangs out with you? Interesting..." Sakura hummed. "Does he hit on you?" Ino asked, eager for gossip. "No, we're _friends_. He's more of a tease," Sumi replied. "Oh yeah, there's no way Kiba would actually show his _love_." Ino exaggerated her voice at the word love. "True true. He's totally tsundere!" Tenten laughed. "Kiba-kun has a weird way of showing his feelings," Hinata offered in her quiet voice. "So, do you liiiike him?" Ino asked the big question. Sumi looked down. "We're friends."

"Suuuure. Everyone starts out as 'just friends', you know," Ino said. "Yeah. Temari and Shikamaru were _just friends_ ," Tenten grinned, making air quotes. "And Ino and Sai were _just friends_ ," Sakura teased. Ino blushed, but didn't miss a beat, saying "And Hinata and Naruto were _just friends._ " "Okay, I get it! Seriously though. We're—" "Just friends?" Sakura finished for her. Sumi gave up. "Yes."

Ino looked at her thoughtfully. "So nothing interesting has happened between you guys?" she asked. "Well, he almost got me killed if that's what you mean," Sumi answered. "What?! OMG, how?!" Sakura demanded. "Spill!" Ino added. "It wasn't that big of a deal..." Sumi began. She told them about her Yumegakure mission, Shinjurou and Seiji. "That actually sounded fun!" Tenten said. "A psycho poison-specialist? How come I don't get missions like that?!" Ino whined. Sumi grinned. "Personally, it was terrifying, but I guess it'd be fun for you shinobi," she said.

"Oh yeah, you're not a kunoichi, are you?" Ino asked. Sumi shook her head.

"So how do you like Konoha so far?" Sakura asked. "It's fun. The people are nice. It's hard to find a job around here though," Sumi answered. "Really? Maybe you're just not looking at the right places?" Hinata suggested. "What are your areas of interests?" Ino asked. Sumi shrugged. "Anything really," she replied.  
The girls went through a list of possible jobs for Sumi. Growing borred, they lapsed back into giggling and gossip. They told Sumi about all their friends, and the DOs and DONTs. Sumi learned not to call Chouji fat, ever and to never expect Shikamaru to help her do anything, ever.

Eventually, they ended up joining the guys and they all told different stories and reminisced their childhood memories. Sumi laughed so hard, she cried. Now she kind of wished she'd grown up in Konoha, with them. Her childhood was no where near that fun. She shook her head to clear memories of her childhood. If she thought of it too much, she'd fall into depression, and she didn't want to taint this beautiful memory.

Kiba caught her eye from time to time to make sure she was having fun. She was touched that he cared so much. She started to think of what the girls had suggested but shook that thought off too. Right now was for fun. She could worry and ponder later.

The day was over much too quickly though. One by one, they left, wishing everyone a good night and telling Sumi that it was nice to meet her. Naruto, Sakura and Hinata stayed back so they could clean up Kakashi's home. "We're off then," Kiba said to them. "Come by again later, kay?" the blond grinned. "It was nice meeting you, Sumi-chan. I hope we can be friends," Hinata said shyly. "If Kiba does anything to you, let me know and I'll make him regret it!" Sakura said, punching her fist. Kiba sweat-dropped and Sumi laughed. "Thanks everyone! Good night!" she said happily.

Kiba and Akamaru walked on either side of Sumi. Konoha was usually bustling with people, even at night, but the road to Sumi's house was quiet and empty. The stars and the moon provided the only light and illuminated the trees; it was beautiful. But Kiba and his partner were silent, which was kind of uncomfortable for Sumi. All she could hear was the sound of her own heart beating, which was getting faster by the second.

Just when she thought she couldn't take it any longer, Kiba spoke. "So did you have fun?" "Yeah. Your friends are really nice," Sumi smiled. Kiba exhaled. "Good. You looked kinda uncomfortable, so I was worried," he said. Sumi was surprised. That was what was bothering him? "No no! I mean I was kind of overwhelmed at first but everyone's really nice and I got used to them!" she blurted. Kiba grinned. "We are kind of a lot to take at once, aren't we?" he laughed. "You really are, but I kind of like that about you guys," Sumi replied.

Kiba's confident smirk returned. "Of course. We're just awesome that way," he bragged. "But I'm really glad you had fun," he added, a bit more serious. Sumi stopped and faced him so he could see her smile. "Me too," she said. He smiled back, and at that moment, the world stopped. It was just them, just Sumi and Kiba, smiling at each other, just happy to be happy. It was bliss, just the two of them.

 _"Bark_!"

Oh yeah, and Akamaru too.

 **Thanks for reading this chapter! Hope you enjoyed it!**

 **If you'd like to see my final drawing for Sumi, or learn more about the Tenro clan from the last few chapters, PM me! ^_^**


	12. IMPORTANT! MAKE SURE YOU READ THIS!

Hello everyone! Soranaru here! Sorry, I haven't updated in almost two months! My finals were coming up so I had no choice but to take a break and do nothing but study.

I'm back for good now but I have important news: I'm leaving . Hold up, that doesn't mean that I'm leaving my stories at cliffhangers! I'll continue updating them on Quotev!

Fanfiction-dot-net is not convenient for me at all. First of all, I can't add pictures or links. Nobody ever comments. It is near impossible to get views and stuff. And it is so dang DULL! So yeah, I'm done with it.

If you wanna find out what happened next in this story, go to and type "Soranaru" in the search bar. My profile will come up and you can click "Published" to see my stories.

So yeah, this is goodbye everyone! Thanks for not un-following my stories when you had the chance! I look forward to seeing you all on Quotev too! Bye!


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